Fate's Tapestry
by Wandergirl108
Summary: Sequel to Threads of Fate - need I say more? This fic has been bouncing around in my head for well over a decade, and it's finally coming together; half the ideas are from the mind of an eight-year-old, so please be gentle. Note: I try to keep BOTH stories from the game as canon as possible simultaneously. Credit goes to penname "hahahahahahhahahahahhabye" for the name of an OC.
1. Chapter 1

"Hang on."

Mint stopped short. They weren't even out of sight of Claire's cabin yet.

"What?" Rue asked, confused, stopping and turning back to her.

She gestured back to where they'd come from. "Who was that guy, anyway?"

Rue blinked. "Didn't your sister tell you about him?"

Mint scowled. "Maya never tells me anything," she grumbled; "not unless I beat it out of her, anyway."

Rue tried not to take that literally. "He's my brother," he told Mint, answering her question. "His name's Ruenis."

"Your brother?" she repeated. "Like, one of Valen's dolls?"

Rue nodded. "Yeah."

"And that's why he knows that stuff about Valen and the Western Desert?" Mint asked. "He has all his 'memories' and stuff, like Doll Master did?"

"Yes," Rue answered, not sure where she was going with this.

"Does his life stone work, like yours?" Mint asked.

"Uh…We haven't exactly…tested his powers…yet," Rue replied slowly. "I'm not sure what exactly he can do."

"But his life stone isn't dead like Doll Master's was, right?" Mint pressed. "Like, it does more than just give him life like Doll Master - it gives him powers and everything, right?"

"Yeah, it's fully functional," Rue answered; "or at least, it looks like it is."

"Then why the hell isn't he coming with us?!" Mint exclaimed, already turning back. "He'll be able to help - probably even more than you!"

She was right, and the insult didn't hurt Rue, but he ran in front of her to stop her all the same.

"He should stay with Claire," he told Mint firmly. "I'd feel bad about leaving Claire alone."

Mint scowled again. "She did just fine on her own before she met _you_, didn't she?" she pointed out rudely.

Again, she was right, and again, Rue didn't take offense, but again, he stopped her as she started to shoulder past him.

"He doesn't need to get caught up in your issues," he told Mint. "I'll come and help you, but Ruenis can stay out of this."

"Bah," Mint grumbled, but she didn't fight any more. Rue was actually surprised that she gave in - that wasn't something she normally did. Still, he was glad when they started walking again, even when the forest fully obscured the view of Claire's cabin. He was almost afraid to admit it to himself, but it was kind of invigorating to be going on a long journey again.

~o~

It quickly became clear to Rue that Mint's willingness to drop the issue of Ruenis was because her impatience to get going outweighed her interest in the doll - they actually ended up going by foot for a few days before meeting up with Klaus and his family. Just as Mint had said, all of the family had come along with Klaus, even Prima Doll. _It really is just like last time,_ Rue thought as greetings were exchanged. _Except this time, we won't have been wandering for years before having somewhere specific to go._

He worried, now, that his lost memories regarding Valen would turn out to be a hindrance after all - that maybe Ruenis _should_ have come along. _It's better that he stays with Claire,_ he kept telling himself. Now that they were back with Klaus and his family, it was easier to not worry about that.

He also felt kind of funny at seeing Elena again. She was a rather airheaded girl, and this had caused difficulties for him more than once, but he couldn't deny that she was really sweet, too. She was the naïve sort of person who saw nothing but happiness and fun everywhere, full of an utterly childish innocence, and it made Rue sometimes feel oddly protective of her…after all, someday, she would realize that the world is full of bad things, too. However, it seemed that that day hadn't come yet - she was exactly the same as he had remembered her, and very happy to see him again, as he was her.

They were only halfway to the Western Desert - it was quite a ways, really, especially on foot, and they were only so far already because Claire happened to live a lot closer to the West of the continent than East Heaven Kingdom or even Carona; and while Mint had learned a lot of magic on her last [relic] quest - and even more since returning home - she didn't have the power to transport two adults, two young adults, one young adult Aeon doll, and one child magic doll to the other side of the world all together. There was no real rush - things were already going a lot faster than the last [relic] hunt had - so even Mint didn't complain about the slow going, and the six spent the travel time catching up.

At one point, Rue asked Mint about the others.

"You said Belle and Duke and Rod are going to be there?" he asked her.

She shrugged. "Probably. The Western Desert isn't as empty as it sounds, apparently - supposedly, there's an entire town out there. Between that and the ruins, it's the sort of place they'd go. Besides, it's not like this trip is secret or anything - Rod was the one who delivered the message from Klaus to me."

"Oh." It felt almost bothersome, how conveniently fate had arranged for all of them to be in the same place at the same time once again. It had done that before, brought him - _him_, one of Valen's dolls, though he'd completely lost any memory of being such - to Carona along with all the other people he'd need to bring the Dewprism back into the known world, all at the same time, all while they had the same goal. Well, all of them with the exception of Rod, anyway, and the almost eerie coincidence attached to Rod was the fact that he just happened to have the Pulsar-Inferno Typhoon Omega, which had been an invaluable asset in their quest. Oh, and the Dewprism had just _happened_ to be under the care of East Heaven Kingdom, Mint's home. The more he'd thought on it since coming home, the eerier the coincidences had seemed to be, and already it looked like things were headed in that direction yet again. It made him feel…trapped. Like destiny _wasn't_ something that could be entirely denied.

And he hadn't forgotten Ruenis's comment that Valen had spent a lot of time in the place that had become the ruins they were all journeying to see. Valen had declared, even in defeat, that he would one day return and become a god and reign over all of existence - that that was _his_ destiny. Even if the seal at the lake ruins had been a one-time deal, surely there were other access points, if Valen still believed in his dreams…and Ephlesia was a likely place for one. With every day that passed, every step they took, he could only wonder if he was being led by a leash, bound by fate…

"You've been very quiet this entire trip, Rue."

Rue jumped at the sound of his name. "What?" he asked, looking up from the fire he'd been gazing at.

Mira gave him a small smile; the others were looking on, signifying a shift in the conversation.

"You've hardly said anything in the weeks we've been walking," Mira said. "You seem as serious as you were when we first met. Is something bothering you?"

"Um…" Rue looked into the fire again, the dancing flame giving him a hypnotic pattern to gaze at. "I'm just…thinking about how odd it is that we're all coming together again."

"It's not _that_ odd," Mint scoffed. "We're searching for a [relic]. We're not the only ones who do that even at the best of times, and we met in the first place because we were all looking for the same thing. It's something we have in common…unfortunately." This last was obviously a reference to Belle and Duke, and anyone else who would like to claim the [relic] before her for that matter.

"I know, but…" Rue sighed. She _was_ right, and he couldn't figure out how to put his uneasiness into words that would make sense in the face of her logic. "I guess I just don't want to keep having to deal with things involving Valen," he said at last.

"You think I do?" Mint asked cynically. "It sucks, no two ways about it. But if there's a [relic] in it for me, we'll just have to deal with it. Again." She grimaced, her face reflecting the very same displeasure with Valen-related affairs that Rue felt.

"I don't think the [relic] we're looking for belonged to Valen," Klaus inserted. "For that matter, I'm not entirely sure there's a [relic] in the ruins of Ephlesia at all. Even if there is, it will be much more manageable than the Dewprism, from what Mel explained to me."

"Hopefully not _too_ much more 'manageable'," Mint grumbled just quietly enough that the others could pretend not to hear her.

"If it wasn't made by Valen, which Aeon _do_ you think made it, Doctor?" Rue asked, realizing he should have asked this sooner. "Valen made the Dewprism, and Atenacius made the Book of Cosmos…" He thought for a moment. "What other Aeons _were_ there, anyway?"

"Oh, there were hundreds!" Klaus replied enthusiastically, and his family knew then and there that there would be no more talking tonight except Klaus going on about his research. "Many of them used their exceptional powers in an attempt to comprehend some aspect of the universe, some with more success than others. The greatest Aeons were very few, relatively speaking, and Valen and Atenacius were the most powerful of all. The Aeons were an entire race, essentially, varying in overall strength and ability and in outlook on the universe and the concept of society.

"Of the highest order, apart from Valen and Atenacius, well, for one, there was Ragnar. He's best known for pyrology and his studies of subterranean energy - he was convinced that far below the Earth's surface exists an infinite energy source, and he also worked to understand the very nature of fire itself, everything there was to know about heat. His [relic] was the Red Spear.

"There was Vierna, the biologist, who sought to control the very essence of life. She never really achieved _control_, but her _understanding_ of the nature of life still far surpasses anything modern humans would have been able to discover without the guidance of her research. As a matter of fact, after you and Mint left Carona, I looked back through some of her materials on a hunch, and I believe her work did indeed have a great deal of influence on Prima's creation, possibly even yours. Her [relic] was the White Heart.

"And then there was Xeptyr, the meteorologist. He achieved full insight into weather patterns, and his research is still used to predict the weather today; in his prime, he was said to be able to conjure and dispel hurricanes at will. His [relic] was the Cloud.

"Also, there was Rinsol, the astronomer, who studied the sun, moon, stars, and sky. While his power was never great enough for him to change the orbit of the stars at will as Valen or Atenacius could, his celestial comprehension was so strong that some legends say he could literally speak to the moon and stars and ask them about the mysteries of the universe. In addition to his studies and the knowledge he left for man to make use of after the Aeons' time, records indicate that he actually played a key role in Atenacius's creation of the Book of Cosmos - some even speculate that the two were brothers, though this has never been confirmed. Rinsol's [relic] was the Crystal Sextant.

"There were also many other Aeons, of various levels of power, who made minimal contributions to modern science and magic but had their place among the Aeons all the same - Tenar, Altius, Raykin, Yuetti, Nyali, Kairin, and many, _many_ others. The Aeon [relic] we might find in Ephlesia belonged to one of these lesser-known Aeons, though I'm not entirely sure which one. The most likely candidate would be Ruehi-"

"Ruehi?" The name startled Rue, as he recognized the root in the name that was also characteristic of all of Valen's dolls - 'rue'.

"Yes," Klaus said, nodding; "almost ironic, really."

"How so?" Rue asked, more than just curious now.

"Ruehi is best known for speaking out against Valen, refusing to accept him as a peer," Klaus told Rue, and the feeling in Rue's gut tightened. "Writings recovered from her atelier suggest that she was suspicious and fearful of Valen long before the completion of the Dewprism, and frequently made overtures to the greater Aeons - especially Atenacius - to keep a close eye on Valen's doings or, if possible, subdue or even kill him. She was dismissed for several centuries…"

"Until Valen completed the Dewprism," Rue finished.

"So it would seem," Klaus confirmed, nodding. "Ruehi was gracious, or so records indicate at least, glad that the truth of her warnings was realized before Valen managed to do any real damage."

"I wonder how she knew what he was going to do," Rue mused out loud.

"Some say - and there is no shortage of evidence to support this - that Ruehi, though not recognized as one of the greater Aeons, used her power making significant efforts to comprehend the nature of consciousness and the psyche," Klaus told Rue. "It's likely that she recognized early warning signs of hubris and narcissism in Valen." He went on to describe some of the better-known aspects of her research, and he and Rue spent several hours discussing the various Aeons, long after everyone else had gone to sleep. When caught up in his hobby, Klaus seemed inexhaustible, and Rue was more than willing to hear everything Klaus had to say about the Aeons. He himself had been an Aeon creation, but he had never really thought to learn more about them before; now, he was curious to hear about the world and beings that had lead to his birth.

~o~

"There it is."

After two more weeks of travel on foot, Klaus and his family and friends finally arrived at Avalon, a town on the edge of the Western Desert relatively close to the ruins of Ephlesia City.

"Whew…we made it," Mint sighed with relief, bending over and panting.

Rue was silent, looking around at the buildings on the outskirts of the town, waiting for that same prickle of familiarity he had felt upon seeing Carona that would tell him that this was a place that he, as one of Valen's dolls, was supposed to seek out. So far, he felt nothing, but his uneasiness remained.

"We need to find a place to stay before anyone goes ruin hunting," Mira said, a hint of sternness backing her tone.

"Of course, dear," Klaus said, almost quickly.

"My dear sister, what _are_ you doing?"

The sudden, unexpected reprimand startled Mint so much that she fell over.

Everyone turned around in surprise to see Princess Maya, Mint's younger sister, standing behind them, glaring at Mint. Rue stepped forward as Mint picked herself up.

"Princess Maya?" he asked.

"Hello, Rue," Maya said, sparing the small crowd a brief, faint smile, "and everyone else. I'm sorry to bother you, but my dear sister here has some explaining to do."

"You didn't tell her where you were going?" Rue asked Mint softly.

"Well, duh," she mumbled back.

Rue closed his eyes and shook his head, sighing.

Maya took a step forward. "You have been gone for weeks!" she chastised Mint. "You left entirely unannounced, and I've had to handle all of the kingdom's affairs without you, including the current negotiations with the ambassador from the North! You communicate with the slippery bastard so much better than I do - how could you have left me at his mercy?!"

Mint looked at Maya with a bored expression, completely unperturbed by her sister's fury. She shrugged. "Hey, you're the high-and-mighty crown princess," she said; "you can handle it."

"We are _both_ in charge of our kingdom!" Maya snapped. "If you had affairs to attend to, you were at least obligated to announce your departure! I have been searching for you everywhere for a week!"

"Only one?" Mint asked, sounding almost disappointed, and Prima had to stifle a chuckle at how Mint both didn't want to be bothered by her sister and considered herself important enough to be sorely missed.

"Ohh, you are hopeless," Maya moaned, rolling her head back and putting a hand to her forehead dramatically, the golden ornaments on her crown-like hairpiece swinging wildly. "As co-monarch, you have a duty to our kingdom, and Father is lying on his deathbed pleading to speak with you day and night-"

"Wait, what?!" Mint exclaimed. "Father's dying?!" She put a hand to her mouth, completely taken aback. Rue and the family of four they'd been traveling with all grew wide-eyed with surprise; Mint had never so much as mentioned her father to any of them.

Maya blinked. "Our best healers have been battling with death for days to keep him alive while I tried to find you," she said, sounding almost confused. "You do know how he fell ill…don't you?"

Mint couldn't speak.

Maya resisted the urge to put her hand to her face again. "You've been gone so long that you didn't even hear about that, haven't you?" she asked, making it more of a resigned statement.

"Well…um…" Mint said sheepishly.

Maya sighed. "That's it," she said, "you are coming home this instant. I don't care what you could possibly be doing all the way out here, it will have to wait." And without even waiting for a response, Maya stepped forward, grabbed her sister by the arm, and both of them disappeared in a flash of light.

Rue, Klaus, Mira, Elena, and Prima all stared at the spot where the two princesses had vanished from in shock. Rue was the first to recover.

"What should we do, Doctor?" he asked, turning to Klaus.

"Let's find a place to stay first," Mira said. "After that, you can wait for Mint to come back or get started without her."

"I'd like to see what we can do to get settled and planned out as soon as possible, so we may well have to start before she rejoins us," Klaus said.

No one could think of anything more to say, and after another moment's hesitation, they all turned and walked into town. Elena fell back to walk beside Rue.

"Do you think Mint's gonna be okay?" she asked Rue.

"I'm sure she'll be fine," he said; "she won't let Maya keep her away for long."

"What about her dad?" Elena asked.

Rue sighed, unsure how to tell Elena that in all likelihood, Mint would have to say her goodbyes and maybe stay at East Heaven for the funeral. "I'm sure everything will be fine," was all he could think to say.

~o~

"Mint…"

The soft croak did not befit the King of East Heaven. No longer the voluminous, authoritative monarch he had once been, the retired king was now lying in his bed helplessly, a shrunken look about him due to his rapid weight loss outpacing the elasticity of his skin. He was on his last few breaths, and would have been cold and dead already without the numerous magicians acting as life support.

The spells keeping him in the world of the living at this point were considered forbidden magic unless circumstances were dire - the Kingdom of Sorcery had long ago decreed, and to this day enforced, the rule that death was a necessary fact of life and that all living bodies be allowed to die when their time came unless important affairs remained to be taken care of. The former king had begged to be kept alive so that he might speak with his eldest daughter before passing away, and his High Council had decreed that this was important enough to warrant the forbidden magic.

Now, at long last, Mint was present for her father's final words. Despite her normal self-centered demeanor - not to mention her bitterness at her father's decision to uphold the vote to revoke her right to the East Heaven throne - she couldn't help getting slightly choked up at seeing her father in this state.

"Dad," she said softly, taking his clammy hand.

The dying man gripped tightly, his clouded eyes finding his older daughter's face. Something sparked in his expression that Mint couldn't read.

"Mint," he said again. "I'm…so sorry."

Mint blinked; this was not what she had expected.

"I never did right by you," the old man went on, surprising her further. She couldn't have agreed more, but saying so seemed wrong, so she kept silent.

"I thought…I could shape you," her father went on. "I thought…I could change you. I…was a fool. I punished you for my own foolish mistake." He closed his eyes and made a sound like a weak chuckle. "If you only knew," he rasped. "If only…you could know…the fate I tried to give you…to keep from you…"

"Father…?" Mint was baffled. Her dad's words made no sense to her at all.

He opened his eyes again, and his gaze locked with hers. "Can you ever forgive me?" he asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

Anyone who knew her would have expected her to say no. Under any other circumstances, she probably would have. But seeing her once high and mighty father like this, the despair and desperation in his eyes…Even she wasn't heartless.

"Yes," she said softly. "I forgive you, dad."

"Ah…" The king closed his eyes, never to open them again, as he let out a breath. "Then perhaps…I was not so wrong after all." He was silent for a moment. "The top drawer…" he finally breathed, so softly Mint could barely hear him. "My desk…The letter…you…were born…the last…binding…not…human…forever…Mint…a scene…"

Mint stared blankly at the dying king as his whispered words made less and less sense. Whatever he was trying to say, it would probably never be known. Then, the last of the magic that had been sustaining him finally broke, and he was gone, leaving behind more questions than answers for the former crown princess.

~o~

Mint walked out the door slightly in shock, the courtiers hurrying in behind her to prepare the deceased king for the funeral.

"What did he wish to say to you?" Maya asked Mint. She had been waiting outside, as the king had wanted to speak to Mint alone, but she couldn't hide her worry.

Mint shrugged. "I dunno," she said. "He said a bunch of stuff that didn't make sense. Basically, he wanted to apologize…for _something_…and ask if I could forgive him." She shrugged again. "He seemed really upset, so I told him I forgave him. Then he rambled for a bit, and then he died."

"What exactly did he say?" Maya pressed.

Mint repeated her father's dying words to her sister. Maya pondered them thoughtfully, especially the bit about the top drawer of her father's desk. That drawer had been forbidden to access for anyone; now, perhaps, it was time to find out why.

"Well, it was interesting," Mint said dismissively at last, shrugging again. "I'm gonna go back to Avalon now."

_That_ brought Maya back to the present.

"You will _not_!" she exclaimed. "You will remain for Father's funeral at the _very_ least! I can't believe you would even _consider_ leaving sooner, you hopeless, disgraceful, selfish-!"

"Well, if I'm so awful, maybe I should just go and quit making such a disgrace of myself, then!" Mint snapped.

Maya's fists clenched. "You will remain here for the funeral," she told Mint icily. "As co-queen of East Heaven, I absolutely _forbid_ you to leave a moment before the services are finished. If I must have the High Council place a binding spell on you to keep you here as long as you are obligated, I will do so; you have one chance to avoid forcing my hand."

"Okay, fine, sheesh," Mint said, throwing up her hands in surrender. "Whatever. Can I please go to my room right now, Your Royal Highness?" These last words were imbued with so much disdain that they implied the opposite of what the words meant on their own.

Maya sighed. "That's probably the best place for you," she said resignedly. "Go."

"Thank you _ever_ so much for your permission," Mint said sarcastically, and she walked away.

Maya stood outside the door to her father's room for a minute, thinking. Her father's desk wasn't in his room, it was in what essentially correlated to an office…She had been there frequently since half-taking the throne, used the space and even the desk itself at times, but the top right-hand drawer of the desk had been sealed with more than just a lock. Surely, this was what her father had been talking about in his final ramblings…What had that been about a letter and Mint's birth? Whatever it was, Maya felt spurred by a curiosity she hadn't really known was in her before - she was the calm, more practical-minded sister, after all…but what was in that drawer that was so meaningful her father would think of it in his dying moments?

She had to see.

~o~

The palace was quiet, most of the staff and all of the courtiers in mourning. The ambassador from the North had left upon hearing of the death of the king, understanding the implications and ready to deliver the news to his home kingdom. The office where the king - and later, his daughters - had conducted various meetings was dark and silent. Maya almost felt guilty as she crept across to the desk, as though she was breaking some horrible taboo.

But she had to know, and she had to know before her sister did.

The auspicious drawer was completely unlocked now, the spell apparently having broken upon the king's death. Inside was an envelope that shimmered, almost glowed, with a silvery light, and a leather-bound tome that Maya only had to glance through for a moment to recognize as a diary.

Her father's diary, and a mysterious letter. She clutched both to her chest and hurried to her room to study them, feeling guilty but more concerned about what she might find. If it had to do with Mint, she had a feeling it probably wasn't good.

Hours later, she found she had been proven entirely right.


	2. Chapter 2

Avalon, as its name suggested, was a town full of life. Carona barely constituted as a town (it passed as such mainly due to the fact that it had a wall built around it), but Avalon was big, just a tiny bit too informal to call a city, its people many and diverse. There were several inns, a hotel or two, and many different shops, all side-by-side with various sizes of houses. Rue had never been in such a densely populated place before, and as he looked around, though he tried to focus on what he was looking for, his attention kept being drawn back to the masses of people all but crowding between the buildings.

_If Valen _did_ put some of his dolls nearby, and they've already woken up, it would be so easy for them to go unnoticed here,_ he thought.

"Wow," Prima Doll exclaimed, "look at all the people!"

Rue turned to the smaller, lesser doll. The boy was looking around with an expression of childish wonder on his face. It occurred to Rue that the Prima Doll had been designed to fulfill a single role in a relatively unpopulated area, never meant to see crowds at all, much less mingle; the number of people here must have been much more overwhelming for him than it was for Rue.

Klaus, who had also been looking around, stepped forward and hailed one of the dozens of people passing by.

"Yzue-ti!" he called.

The individual stopped, and it was then that Rue noticed the contrast in skin color between the crowd and him and Klaus's family. The man's skin was dark, darker than just tan; the closest Rue had ever seen had been Psycho Master, but this man was darker still.

Klaus and the man exchanged some words none of the others could understand, and then the man went on his way.

"Doctor…?" Rue was confused.

Klaus turned to his family and Rue and smiled. "On this side of the continent, most people speak a different language," he explained; "a fair number know ours, too, but _all_ of them know the local tongue."

"And you, too?"

Klaus chuckled. "Of course," he replied; "foreign languages are my specialty, both ancient and modern." He glanced around at his family and friend. "If any of you have a hard time here, I'll help. Of course, not everyone will need a translator to talk to."

"What did you say to that man?" Elena asked.

"I just asked where he'd recommend us staying as tourists," Klaus told her with another smile. He motioned for them to follow. "This way."

As they proceeded, Mira walked beside her husband, eager to get settled, but the younger ones trailed behind, still awestruck by the sights and sounds of Avalon. None of them had ever seen anything like it, though Rue couldn't help thinking that Mint would have been much less impressed. None of them could read any of the signs posted anywhere in the town, and between the variety of conversations and the foreign language itself, pretty much all of the noise around them was completely indecipherable. It was an avalanche of sights and sounds that none of the youths could make any sort of sense of.

While Elena and Prima Doll simply stared around with wide, starry eyes like the children they were, Rue kept an eye out for something specific: white hair. He didn't know if Dolls of Valen would have varying skin tones to match the region, but he knew for a fact that each of his siblings had white hair, a Dewstone on their forehead, and some means of hiding their Dewstone. He still didn't have that strange nostalgic feeling Carona had given him, but that didn't mean much - with his memory wiped clean, he couldn't rely on even his instinct for such matters.

_I wish Ruenis had come,_ he found himself thinking for the dozenth time, and for the dozenth time, he banished the thought with the reminder, _It's better that he looks after Claire._

_Still…_

~o~

A whole week went by just preparing East Heaven for the funeral of the former king. Though he had retired and handed his duties down to his two daughters a while ago, there were certain rituals to attend to upon the event of his death.

Mint stood around grouchily, bored out of her mind and impatient to return to Avalon to resume her [relic] hunt. As the king's eldest child, the former crown princess, she had all sorts of duties that Maya forced her to attend to. Whenever she tried to point out that Maya was the one recognized as taking the throne, Maya would become oddly silent for a moment, then come out with a counterpoint about Mint _wanting_ to be queen, arguing that if Mint had gotten what she'd wanted, these responsibilities would have been hers. It was an argument that wasted five minutes every time Mint had to do something, but Maya was adamant, and Mint just wanted everything to be over and done with, so she always conceded in the end.

As the Book of Cosmos - the second-most powerful [relic] in the known world - had been completely stripped of its power as an Aeon [relic], other [relics] kept by the Kingdom of Sorcery had to be utilized in exceptionally creative ways. In this case in particular, the Book itself had both been a gateway to the cosmos _and_ the resting place of Atenacius's spirit, so monarchs of East Heaven had formerly been laid to rest with its power; now, however, the kingdom had to improvise. Strangely, Maya insisted that Mint figure out how this might be done, while at the same time refusing to let her so much as look at any of the [relics] the kingdom possessed. Whenever Mint pointed out how unfair this was, Maya would again go strangely silent for a minute, then make some excuse and walk away, not leaving any room for discussion on the matter.

On top of all this, Mint needed to meet with officials from all over the world, be fitted for a mourning gown, and give a speech at the funeral. It was all so incredibly _boring_, and sometimes she wanted to scream - or, more desirable still, run off back to Avalon and leave the whole affair to sort itself out. Maya's threat of a binding spell was the only thing keeping her - she didn't know if it would be lifted after the funeral, and she wasn't skilled enough in magic to break such a charm herself.

Had she not been so impatient, and so annoyed at the proceedings she had to endure that delayed her search for the Ephlesia [relic], Mint might have paid more attention to her younger sister's odd behavior. She sometimes noticed Maya staring at her as though she'd never seen her older sister before, and she was less condescending when she spoke to Mint, almost as though she were afraid of something. If nothing else, Mint should have noticed when she asked Maya about the drawer their father had mentioned right before he died, and she gave a nervous start before stammering that she'd already looked and found nothing. Mint did _not_ pay attention to this, however, and the matter of what Maya had discovered stayed buried.

However, when at last the funeral proceeded - the ceremony lasted an entire day - Mint found herself strangely sad. She went through the motions without shedding a tear, but…hearing all about her father's life, his accomplishments, even the asides about her and Maya…something in her chest started to ache. And despite herself, she couldn't forget what her father had said to her with his dying breaths:

_I'm so sorry…I never did right by you…I punished you for my mistake…_

~o~

During the time Mint was gone, Rue, Klaus, and Klaus's family tried to make the most of what they could do without leaving Mint out. Avalon was indeed a site for tourism, especially being so close to the Ephlesia Ruins, and Elena and Prima Doll had no end of fun running around town, sightseeing and shopping and doing other tourist-y things - the locals might not all have spoken their language, but all shopkeepers did. Rue went along with them to keep an eye on them, just in case something happened - they _were_ children, after all. Klaus spent the week or so doing Ephlesia-related tourist things, touching up on what he already knew and what was generally known about the place before he began his own research. Mira tried to manage everyone, doing motherly things like making sure her kids came home before dark and forcing Klaus to eat every once in a while. She actually reminded Rue of Claire sometimes.

While he was more of a guardian to Elena and Prima than a tourist, Rue did look around, carefully. Mostly, he sought fellow Dolls, but he came up empty. He also searched for something that felt familiar, anything that indicated that Valen's hand had left a mark on this place, but he found nothing on that front, either. Oddly, this only made him more and more anxious with each passing day - until he saw the ruins themselves and found nothing connected to Valen, he wouldn't be able to truly relax.

After five days, he _did_ manage to find a sign advertising Rod, who was set up a fair distance away from the actual town, in one of the open savannah-like spaces between the town and the Western Desert itself. This provided a sandier terrain to fight on than the grass fields outside Carona, as well as a lot more room to maneuver - which was important, because Rod had gotten even more creative with his weapons since Rue had last seen him.

Elena and Prima didn't want to leave town to meet Rod - they were having too much fun being tourists - so Rue waited until late that night, after the two kids had gone to bed. He asked Mira if she wanted to go, but she surprised him by telling him she'd already been by his camp and said hello. So, Rue went alone.

"Hey, look who it is!" Rod said when Rue walked over. He was sitting by a campfire, Johnny Wolf asleep by his side, just like old times. "Long time no see, Rue! How ya been?"

"Um, I've been alright," Rue replied. "How have _you_ been?"

Rod grinned. "Never better," he answered. "I always wanted to come out here and visit Avalon…You'd be surprised how many of the real big cities on this continent are miles away from water - my Pulsar-Inferno Typhoon Omega couldn't reach 'em before."

"But now it can, because of the five cannon orbs Mint found for you?" Rue said.

"Exactly!" Rod stood, still grinning. "Now, my baby can fly me anywhere I'm fixing to go, and a lot faster than before, too." He chuckled. "I almost miss the long road trips - they're a good time to reflect on things and get your thoughts in order, y'know?"

Rue smiled; he knew only too well. "Yeah," he said. "How about your weapon-making business? How has that gone?"

"Great!" Rod replied enthusiastically; he really was a lot happier than Rue had ever known him to be during the ordeal in Carona. "In fact…I hope you don't mind, but I even took a little inspiration from your weapon for one of my works, Rue."

Rue blinked. "Really?" He doubted that there could be a higher compliment coming from Rod - he was pretty much as dedicated to his work as Klaus was to his research, and to consider using something from someone else in his weapon-making was the ultimate sign of respect.

"Yeah! I'd show ya, but…" Rod smiled.

Rue smiled, too. "Yeah, I know." Rule number one: Rod only showed off his weapons in actual combat. "Maybe I'll pay a visit sometime tomorrow and you can show me."

"I'd like that." Rod sat back down. "So…you're on another big adventure, huh?"

"Well…sort of." Rue sat down across from Rod. Rod had seen a lot of things, having traveled the world over, and he could be surprisingly wise and insightful sometimes. Rue hesitated for a moment, wondering how much he could tell Rod.

"Something on your mind?" Rod asked, no longer smiling.

"Um…I'm…well, this is really Mint's party, not mine, I'm just kind of…along for the ride, I guess," Rue said hesitantly.

Rod gave a smirk. "Rue, don't you lie to me," he admonished playfully. "I can read your heart - it's the same as ever. You're up to something."

"I don't know if I'm up to something, exactly, but…" Rue hesitated. "I just…" Suddenly, he thought of something, and he looked up. "Have you seen Duke since you got here?" Belle and Duke always travelled together, and Duke and Rod had formed a weird sort of friendship in Carona that most people on the outside still failed to really comprehend.

Rod shrugged. "Sure," he said; "he's come by to spar every so often for the past couple weeks now."

Rue's gaze fell back to the fire, his heart sinking. "Rod…doesn't it seem strange to you that we're all coming together like this again?" he asked. "I just…I can't help but feeling like we still have something we need to do, something no one bothered to tell us about or ask if we wanted to be involved in…and…it's not fair. I don't really want to be part of some bigger plot, tugged around on strings - I want to live a peaceful life with Claire and Ruenis, and just…be left alone."

Rod looked at Rue silently for several long minutes. The crackling of the fire and the dancing flames filled Rue's mind, lulling him into a pensive doze.

"We don't always get what we want," Rod said at last; "sometimes, the world does have different plans for us, and rarely are we given a choice. But remember that whatever grand scheme you might find yourself caught up in, what you do is ultimately up to you." He paused, then continued, "We can only make the best of what we're given. You can choose to go home right now if that's what you really want - no one's tying your hands and holding you down. Whatever made you decide to come here came from your own heart. Maybe you're restless, maybe you're curious, maybe you missed your friends, maybe you felt like ya had to help Mint out after how things went down last time…but _your_ _heart_ brought you here, not someone else's orders."

Rue nodded. He had learned the power of his will from the great dragon Wylaf, and had exerted it even over his creator, Valen, and overpowered him. Perhaps Rod's "heart" and Wylaf's "will" were the same concepts, just with different names.

"Thanks," he said pensively.

Rod sighed, then laid down on his back and folded his hands behind his head, looking at the stars. "As for us coming together again…I think our hearts will always know each other." He closed his eyes. "Somehow, all our hearts are connected. There's something about us that makes sure we'll always run into each other again. Is it because there's some bigger plot that we're part of, some bigger thing fate chose us to do? No one can say. All we can do is follow our hearts, and trust them to lead us to where we ought to be."

"Yeah…" Rue sighed, then stood up. "It's late, I should let you sleep," he told Rod. "Good night."

"Good night, Rue," Rod called to Rue's back as he walked back to the inn.

As Rue walked through the silent, still night, he thought about Rod's insights, and realized he still didn't have an answer to the question that bothered him the most: Was there something the world needed him to do? Defeating Valen had saved the world several times over, but Valen's dreams were as unbreakable as Mint's - he would come back, and he would finish what he started, unless he was stopped again. As the one Doll born under the perfect circumstances to discover his will, was there something about him that made it his duty to-?

Duty.

That word.

Rue shook his head. _Rod was right about one thing,_ he thought: _I _chose_ to come out here. I _wanted_ to see everyone again, I _wanted_ to go on a journey…I'm not following anyone's orders. It's my will that brought me this far, and my will that will carry me the rest of the way, wherever that might be._

It was a few minutes before he was back within the town limits of Avalon. The moon shone overhead, almost as bright as a sun, and the billions of stars twinkled in the sky; apart from that, there was no light. Everything was silent and still…and suddenly, Rue got a chill that had nothing to do with the cool desert night air.

It was _too_ quiet.

Yes, it was late, and most normal people would be asleep right now, but a town this big couldn't possibly so utterly silent even in the dead of night. Rue may not have seen many populated places, but even he knew there would have to be _some_ life - a dog barking, a cat slinking through the shadows looking for mice and rats, unwholesome individuals taking advantage of the darkness to do whatever dirty deeds their livelihood depended on. At the very least, the sound of animals that lived in the wilderness beyond should have been audible in the night - there were monsters here just as there were around Carona. But there was no one. Nothing. Everything was utterly still and silent; even the wind was nonexistent. It almost felt as though the whole world were holding its breath.

Rue reached for his weapon without really even thinking about it. He felt a prickling in his gut, flashing back on the night Ruecian had killed Claire - after days of a snowstorm, the sky was suddenly clear, the wilderness still and silent. It had bothered him then, and his intuition had been proven more than right; now, he had that same sense that something was about to happen, something he needed to be ready for, something that would change everything.

But where should he go? He had no idea where anything might happen…

He decided to head back to the inn. If nothing else, he had to make sure Klaus and his family were okay.

He crept through the town, his weapon drawn, every muscle tense as he tried to move as soundlessly as he could. He almost felt as though he was being watched, though the empty nothingness around him was still crushing. He had to go down several streets, between a few houses, and around some corners to get back to the inn where he and the others were staying; with every step, the blood pounded in his ears so hard he worried he might not be able to hear any sound that might happen, even in the stillness.

But nothing happened. He made it to the inn and went inside. The innkeeper was snoring in a chair by a fire, there for any late-night customers who might wander in. The sounds and movements that should have been there were there, almost blindingly normal.

Rue shook his head. He felt like a fog had been lifted from his mind; now, it was hard to even remember the fear he'd felt outside.

_Was I imagining things?_ Rue climbed the stairs and went to his room feeling very uneasy. Something was wrong, and now at last he had some evidence of it. But what did it _mean_?

~o~

More days passed uneventfully for the group in Avalon. Elena and Prima started running out of things to do, and even they started to become eager to go out to the ruins at last.

One afternoon, the kids agreed to go with Rue to Rod's field, and they watched the two spar. Rod used the weapon he'd drawn inspiration from Rue for, just to show it off, and Rue was impressed. Like Rue's weapon, Rod's Arc Edge (named after Rue's weapon) was a strong and useful weapon from the moment it was picked up, but had several ways it could unfold to reveal secondary blades and catch an enemy off-guard. While Rue's was very simple and straightforward, with a primary edge and a secondary blade that could be released when the tool was swung a certain way, Rod had lavished a great deal of cunning on his weapon's parts - several times, Rue got hit without having any idea what had struck him. Elena spent most of the fight with her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide with concern for both fighters; Prima Doll, on the other hand, was a very enthusiastic and energetic audience, cheering Rue on with gusto. In the end, though, Rue lost.

He and Rod shook hands. "That was amazing!" Rue said. "You've really outdone yourself with this one."

"That was _awesome_!" Prima Doll gushed in agreement, running over. "How did you make that thing?"

Rod turned away. "Aw, you're too kind, boy," he said, apparently genuinely embarrassed.

"Oh Rue, are you hurt?" Elena asked, running over as well.

Rue gave her something between a smile and a grimace. "I'll be okay," he reassured her; "nothing dinner and a good night's sleep won't heal." In truth, he felt very sore, but he thought he could still make it back to town without any real trouble.

Unless…

Suddenly, Rue's gaze snapped up to look at the sky. It was getting very dark - the first few stars were already visible overhead. Rue remembered the last time he'd been caught outside after dark, and though nothing had happened, he didn't want to take risks, with his own strength so low and both Elena and Prima Doll in his care.

Prima Doll was still gushing at Rod about the fight, and Rue made a mental note to tell Klaus and Mira that their "son" seemed to be a swordplay enthusiast in the making. Who would have guessed? Elena, meanwhile, was silent, still looking at Rue with concern. Something about her expression gave Rue a little twinge in his gut that had nothing to do with fear or his injuries.

"We need to go," he said, cutting Prima Doll off. "It's getting late, and Mira and the Doctor will worry."

Rod looked up. "Huh," he said, "so it is." He smiled at Rue. "I'll tell ya this: No one has managed to last against me with this weapon as long as you did."

"Thanks," Rue said, barely managing to spare a smile in his worry. He looked at Prima and Elena. "Come on, we need to go." He turned and started walking back to town without another word.

"Bye, Rod!" Prima said before running after Rue. Elena nodded a farewell and hurried after her brother and friend.

Rue walked as fast as he could with his injuries. It was nowhere near as late as it had been that one night, but he wanted to take as little risk as possible.

The last of the sun's rays were vanishing over the horizon when the three youths got back within the town limits of Avalon, and the moon had almost fully risen. The hairs on the back of Rue's neck stood up at the mere memory of that unnerving night. He tried to go walk faster.

"Hey! Rue! Wait up!" Prima called.

Rue didn't want to, but he stopped to wait for Prima and Elena; he didn't want to be caught out here late at night, but he felt it was more important to keep Prima and Elena close in case something happened…and he had a feeling, once again, that something was going to happen.

"Gee, it's awfully quiet," Elena commented, looking around as she walked up beside Rue.

"Yes it is," he said softly. He looked around; again, the entire town seemed completely empty and deserted, with not a sound to be heard. It was harder to pay attention to his instincts this time, though, since he wasn't alone.

"Where is everyone?" Elena asked no one as they walked.

"Inside," Rue told her. "Asleep." _I hope._

"It doesn't even get this quiet at home," Prima Doll said.

Rue nodded but said nothing, trying to concentrate. If there was some danger, this would be the absolute worst time for him to be caught by surprise.

Perhaps Elena and Prima Doll noticed Rue's seriousness, because they both fell silent and edged a bit closer to him. Perhaps they sensed something themselves. In any case, the three of them walked nervously through the town.

Suddenly, Rue heard footsteps.

_Damn!_ Why couldn't the danger have come the night he _wasn't_ on the last reserves of his strength and taking care of two defenseless children? Cursing his luck but determined to go down fighting, Rue quickly stepped between his friends and the approaching sound, his hand on his weapon. He didn't draw it just yet, though; maybe he could avoid fighting whoever was coming. Being so weak, he had to take the chance. He stood tense, trying to make out the figure approaching them, but they were coming through a dark alleyway.

Suddenly, the person sped up, almost running right at them! Before Rue could even draw his weapon, out of the shadows came…

…Mint.

"_There_ you are," she said in an irritated tone, glaring at Rue and the two siblings. "I've been looking all over for you."

"Mint?" He'd been so certain that there was something dangerous out here…

"Nice to see you, too," she said sarcastically. "It only took me nine days to get Maya off my back so I could come." She looked around. "Sheesh, talk about a ghost town. Does anyone even live here?"

"Um…" Rue didn't know how to answer.

"Hi, Mint!" Elena chirped up, stepping forward. "How's your dad?"

Mint shrugged. "Dead," she said. "I had to stay for the funeral and stuff."

"Oh!" Elena exclaimed, genuinely shocked and upset. "I'm so sorry, Mint!"

"It's fine," Mint said dismissively. She turned back to Rue. "Where are Klaus and Mira?"

"Back at the inn," he replied, still trying to calm his heartbeat. "We were out late because of Rod."

"So the lazy bum _is_ here, huh?" Mint said. She frowned. "Great."

"Lazy bum?!" Prima Doll exclaimed. "Mint, you should have seen him fight Rue! He used this-!"

"Not now, Prima," Rue said, so sharply he even startled himself.

Three pairs of shocked eyes turned to him.

"Er, I mean, I…just think we should get back to the inn," Rue said uncomfortably. "We can talk once we're inside."

"Oh, right, you need to rest after that fight with Rod," Elena said, concern for him taking over her expression once again, and something funny fluttered in Rue's chest. More importantly, she started walking back to the inn almost as quickly as Rue, and with Elena and Rue hurrying away, Prima and Mint had no choice but to follow.

Confusion and fear aside, Rue was glad Mint had joined them; she could fight almost as well as he could, and unlike him, she was in prime condition.

But, again, nothing happened. They made it back to the inn without incident, and Rue woke the innkeeper to tell him he had another guest. Mint paid for her room herself, and everyone went to bed.

Even though his body ached, Rue didn't go straight to sleep, though. Instead, he went to the small window by his bed and looked outside. Everything was still eerily silent.

He shook his head. Something was wrong, but he was too tired and wounded to figure it out. Unable to resist any longer, he flopped down on his bed and went to sleep.

~o~

Mint couldn't sleep, though. She sat on the bed she'd just paid for, but couldn't bring herself to lie down. Something about finally being back in Avalon filled her with a strange vivacity that was unusual even for her. Even the energy drain it had taken to transport herself as close to Avalon as was within her magical limits didn't have her anything but hyper right now. She couldn't wait until tomorrow. Finally, _finally_, she was going to get a [relic] of her very own and conquer the world.

She made herself lie down, but she spent the whole night with her eyes wide open, quivering in anticipation. Something good was here, something _wonderful_. All her dreams were going to come true in this town. She could feel it.


	3. Chapter 3

"Rue! Rue, wake up!"

Rue's dream about destroying a pumpkin patch was shattered by an enthusiastic pounding on the door to his room.

"Wake up! Wake up! Come on, let's go!"

"Okay!" he called, forcing himself to sit up. He looked out the window, and saw that it was barely sunrise. He turned to the door. "What are you-?"

But already there was a thumping of fancy boots running down the hall, away from Rue's room and towards Klaus and his family.

Rue shook his head. Mint had always been enthusiastic about finding a powerful [relic] and taking over the world, but being up and pushing for a move on this early in the morning? Really? Mint was a brat; weren't brats supposed to be lazy and sleep in as late as possible?

Oh well. There was nothing to be done for it, so Rue got up.

When he got downstairs to the common area, he was surprised to see that he actually wasn't the first there apart from Mint - Klaus was up, looking almost as chipper as the spoiled princess. The two were talking very animatedly; Rue guessed that Klaus was bringing Mint up to speed on whatever there was to know about Ephlesia from the locals.

"Good morning, Doctor," Rue said, joining them.

"Hey, Rue," Klaus said brightly.

"One down, three to go!" Mint danced in place. "Oh, what's keeping them?! Can we just leave them behind and go now?"

Klaus chuckled, smiling at Mint's eagerness. "We ought to let them choose whether or not they want to come along," he said; "I know Elena and Prima are excited to see the ruins, too."

Rue stared. It was as though Mint literally couldn't hold still for even a second. "You're…awfully eager," he said, almost hesitantly.

Mint rolled her eyes. "I've been stuck at home for nine days, doing boring things, with boring people, all because Maya had to be a stuffed shirt," she said. The words sounded like Mint, but something about her tone seemed off. It took Rue a second to figure it out: She didn't sound half as grumpy as would be expected from her. "I am _sooo_ ready to get the [relic]," she went on, dancing in place again. "I can't wait!"

"We don't even know if there's a [relic] out there," Rue pointed out. "They're just ruins of an ancient city - ruins that have been searched over by a lot of people. If there was something that important out there, someone would probably have found it by now."

But Mint waved this aside. "No, there's a [relic] out there," she said, grinning. "I can _feel_ it! Can't you?"

Rue wanted to say that the only thing he felt was very uneasy, even if he himself wasn't quite sure why, but before he could say anything, someone else spoke.

"Excuse me, miss?"

Mint, Rue, and Klaus turned to see the innkeeper standing behind them. The man was a local, but perfectly fluent in Eastern language - only the barest hint of an accent laced his words, lending his voice a musical touch.

"Yeah?" Mint asked, still wearing an oddly cheerful smile.

"I heard you plan to visit the ruins of Ephlesia City," the man said, a strange frown on his face. "I seem to recall you came in late last night?"

Mint shrugged. "Yeah, so?" she asked.

The innkeeper hesitated, then said, "Well, you were…very fortunate that no harm befell you last night, but I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't warn you: Do _not_ let yourself be caught in the ruins after dark."

"Or what?" Mint laughed.

But Rue's attention was focused on the innkeeper. "I've noticed it's very quiet at night here," he said. "Do you know why no one is outside after dark?"

The man nodded, stroking his beard as though nervous. "Everyone here stays inside at night," he said. "If you've been out after dark, I'm sure you noticed that not even the tiniest insect makes the slightest noise?"

Rue nodded. "Yes."

"We don't know why that is," the innkeeper told him, "but we've long figured that if the animals around here are afraid of the night, we should be, too. So we stay inside after sunset no matter what, and we make as little noise as we can."

"I see…" Rue's question was half answered, but the half-answer only made the question that much more troublesome. What was it that even the smallest bug feared about nighttime on the border of the Western Desert? The same thing that made him feel so afraid when he was out at night, yes, but what _was_ it that was so powerful, every living thing's instinct was the same? For that matter, what about Rod? Was he safe out in his camp? Rue made a mental note to talk to him about it the first chance he got.

Mint was impossible to pacify - she pestered Klaus, the innkeeper, anyone who could tell her anything about Ephlesia City while they waited for the rest of Klaus's family. Rue himself was more interested in why Avalon had come to be in a place where everything was afraid of the night, and eventually he and Mint were being told the tale from the innkeeper himself.

The ruins of Ephlesia City had always been a subject of curiosity for many historians and archaeologists such as Klaus, being so far west of pretty much everything else on the continent. It wasn't uncommon knowledge that the ruins dated back well into the age of the Aeons, and many assumed they were built by Aeons, so everyone wanted to investigate them. Of course, they were many miles away from any city, town, village, or settlement; so, rather than going out alone, most people interested in the ruins for whatever reason grouped together, sharing supplies for the expedition.

As it turned out, the strange nighttime stillness had been a local phenomenon even before then. What was more, there was actually a strange stillness blanketing all of the ruins, even in broad daylight, and it only increased the further in one got - nothing at all seemed to stir in the ruins proper, and anyone who investigated them never stayed for long. Even as far away as Avalon, the wild creatures seemed exceptionally skittish; while this was most obvious at night, even during the day, odd behavior was noticed among the wildlife - Saber Tigers traveling in large packs and rarely straying from the group, Pollywogs unwilling to cross dry land, Stingers living in burrows and staying underground most of the time even during the day, Mandolas only growing in especially sheltered spots.

Still, curiosity was a powerful force, and people kept coming - for some, the strange unease that seemed to hang about the place just made it that much more worthy of investigation. The more driven away some were, the more determined they became to stay, and they settled down as close as they could get without being affected during daylight hours. First there were tents and bedrolls, then shacks, then log cabins, and so on; what was once a campsite grew without limit, eventually becoming an entire town: Avalon.

The whole story made Rue that much more unsettled, even afraid. Something was _wrong_ here, could no one else see that? Avalon had grown on the very edge of the outer limits of a foreboding miasma, and as far as Rue could tell (and feel instinctively), that was just dumb. Human stubbornness was amazing sometimes.

Mint, on the other hand, had a hard time not laughing. "So everyone and everything around here is always scared for no reason at all?" she asked, as though she thought the innkeeper was telling some sort of joke.

The man frowned. "Just because we don't know what's going on doesn't mean there's nothing there," he said, "and everyone would much rather be cautious."

"_Why_, though?" Mint chuckled. "If you want to know what's out there, why not go out there and see it? Not _everyone_ can be scared."

The innkeeper sighed. "Miss, I can't explain it to you, but once you go into the ruins, you'll understand," he said. "There's something unnatural about that place."

"Well, I sure _hope_ so," Mint grinned, standing up. The rest of Klaus's family were ready to go - everyone wanted to come - and Mint couldn't stay sitting down.

Rue nodded at the innkeeper as he stood - whether in thanks or farewell, he wasn't sure - then turned and went after Mint, and the whole group headed out to finally investigate the notorious ruins of Ephlesia City.

~o~

Maya was not happy.

Mint had skipped out as soon as the funeral had ended, and Maya was too busy getting everything back in order to go after her. She couldn't sleep, working through the night to get her responsibilities taken care of so she could go after her sister - she needed Mint _home_, at East Heaven, while she decided what to do about her. Maya may not have quite known that Mint was on another [relic] hunt, but just not knowing what Mint was up to had her on edge.

Every minute, that glowing, silvery envelope taunted Maya in her room, rendering her unable to get a moment's rest with its terrible knowledge. The worst part was, even if Mint hadn't left, Maya had no idea what she would be doing about it. She couldn't do _nothing_, that had been a mistake from the start, but…what could be done? Her father had done his best, worked with every great magician he could get to lend him assistance, and the result had been a disaster. Even the Book of Cosmos had been of limited use when it still had its power - now that it was good for nothing but being a conduit for Maya's own personal magic, the same as Mint's Dual Halos were for her, well, there was just no magic great enough to fix the issue in the known world. Only something as powerful as the Dewprism could solve this, and of course, that [relic] was far too powerful to be utilized by any mortal.

Maya had always been an upstanding member of the royal family, seeking to do what was best and make sure that she and her people were well-versed, cared for, and safe regarding all things magic - such was the duty of the Kingdom of Sorcery. Now, for the first time, Maya wished she had been born a commoner, and that someone else had been burdened with the task of handling Mint - someone no one would have envied.

Unfortunately, that someone _was_ her.

And she was clueless.

~o~

Mint felt like she was walking on air.

She had never felt so happy, so free and full of energy, as she did walking through the ruins of Ephlesia City. Or no, there had been _one_ other time - the moment she had first seen the Dewprism, before Valen had made his appearance. _That_ had been a moment of sheer joy. Still, she couldn't help climbing around on the rocks like an Ootang while Klaus and the others walked between the structures, happiness bubbling in her chest.

"Gee, this place gives me the creeps," Elena said, looking around nervously.

"Me too," Prima said, more subdued than his normal, cheery self.

"Yeah," Rue agreed. He'd once been to Sorcerer Yordaf's atelier, the Ghost Temple, and that had been a scary place, but even in broad daylight, the ruins of Ephlesia City had his skin crawling in ways even that place never had.

"What are you talking about?" Mint laughed, jumping from one ancient pillar to another. "It's beautiful out here!"

"Mint, get down from there," Rue said, suddenly seized by an irrational fear that one of the rocks would crumble under her and she'd fall. "Those aren't stable!"

"Sheesh, chill out, would ya?" Mint retorted, grinning.

She really couldn't understand why Rue, Klaus, and Klaus's family were walking so close together, all looking around like they thought ghosts might burst out of the ruins any moment. Likewise, they couldn't understand how she could be so carefree, when it felt like dozens of eyes were on them, like malevolent spirits were about to appear out of thin air and devour them all…

"I could live here," Mint said cheerfully, still jumping around from rock to rock. "In fact, once I conquer the world, I think I'll build my palace _right_ _here_. It's perfect!"

The main ruins - the section studied by historians - were technically in the middle of the desert, but plenty of remnants of ancient buildings littered the sand for a fair distance around. Not even the tiniest patch of lichen grew in the crevasses of the ancient rocks, not a gnat flew through the air. The sand was packed hard and not difficult to navigate, but it was dead, lifeless - anyone looking at it would have no doubt that no form of life could grow in it. The air was hot and dry and still, the sun merciless. So yes, it wasn't quite as nice as a day at the beach, even Mint couldn't argue with that; but still, something about the place just lifted her spirits. Maybe it was the simple fact that a [relic] was probably nearby, maybe even under their feet, but it felt like more than that. The place felt like home, in a way East Heaven never had.

Had she been the more thoughtful sort, Mint might have found that odd. As it was, she just took it for what it was, living in each individual moment as it came.

Rue, meanwhile, had started to feel sick. This place didn't agree with him - something was almost physically resisting him now. Only his desire to protect the peaceful family he was traveling with kept him walking - he didn't trust Mint to be ready when danger came, the way she was acting.

"Rue?"

Rue turned and met Elena's wide, fearful eyes. "Elena?"

She edged a bit closer to him. "I don't like it here," she said softly.

He nodded. "Me either." He drew his weapon. "But nothing will hurt you, no matter what happens. I promise."

"Thanks," Elena said, giving him a faint smile that didn't last.

Spurred by some unfamiliar instinct, Rue reached over and took her hand. Elena was _always_ smiling - the nervousness in her eyes bothered him almost more than the foreboding atmosphere itself. She gripped his hand back, alarmingly tightly - he almost worried it might be a problem when the time came to defend them from whatever lurked here - but he could feel that she needed comfort, so he didn't pull back.

Prima Doll looked like he would have wanted to hold Rue's hand, too, but with his weapon in one and Elena's hand in the other, Rue's hands were full. Instead, Prima jogged up beside Mira and took her hand. Mira spared her adopted son a glance, but even she looked uneasy.

Of all the (sensible) people there, Klaus was the most steadfast. He wore a very serious frown, as though trying to puzzle out exactly what this distressful mood might mean, like a true scientist. He was feeling it, too, that was clear, but he was more curious about it than anything. It was that same human curiosity that had given rise to Avalon, after all, and if anyone could figure out the secrets of these ruins, it was Klaus.

No more words were said as the six of them finally reached the central structure, what one might guess could almost be called the "city hall" of Ephlesia City, if there had been such things at the time. It looked more like a church than anything, but the Aeons had had no religion, considering themselves high-enough beings to not need even ideas of higher ones.

To no one's surprise, the first thing Klaus said was, "I wonder what purpose this structure served?"

Mint jumped down from the half-collapsed wall she'd just scaled and shrugged. "Who cares?" she asked. "Let's go in and find that [relic]!"

"I'd rather stay out here," Prima Doll said in a small voice, taking a half-step away from the building.

"Me too," Elena said, surprising Rue - normally, she was nearly as reckless and impulsive as Mint.

Klaus turned to his wife. "Honey…"

"You go on without me," Mira told her husband. "Rue and Mint will protect you, and I'd just get in your way."

"Nonsense," Klaus said with a tender smile.

"Actually, I think I'll stay out here, too," Rue said. "Mint can…" He hesitated, having second thoughts, then finished, "Mint can protect the Doctor." He looked at the spoiled princess. "Can't you?" he asked.

Mint waved his question aside with a lazy smile. "Piece of cake," she said. "Come on!" And she charged inside without another moment's hesitation.

"Be careful," Mira told Klaus worriedly.

"I will," Klaus reassured her, and he went inside after Mint.

"Rue, why aren't you going in with them?" Elena asked.

Rue looked at her uncomfortably. "I'd just…rather stay out here," he said evasively, not adding, _In case something happens to you._


	4. Chapter 4

The ancient temple, or atelier, or whatever the building had been, was unusually dark on the inside, despite the broad daylight outside. Luckily, Klaus had brought a lantern, and some of the spells Mint knew could provide light. Immediately, Klaus zeroed in on markings that covered the walls just inside the entrance.

"Fascinating," he murmured, peering at one set of scribbles.

Mint couldn't make heads or tails of any of the markings - not only were the symbols themselves unfamiliar, but they didn't even seem to be organized in any sort of pattern. "I never did get around to taking those remedial ancient lit classes," she said, "but this looks like chicken scratch."

"It is," Klaus said.

Mint blinked. "What?"

"Well, not _chicken_ scratch," Klaus amended. "What I mean to say is, someone was using these walls as a scratch pad."

"Someone a long time ago, or someone recently?" Mint asked.

"At a guess, I'd say somewhere in between," Klaus replied, still studying the markings. "I don't think these were made by Aeons, or whoever else may have built or lived in Ephlesia for that matter - whoever did this seems to have been trying to solve some sort of puzzle. Look there." He pointed at what looked to Mint like a squiggly backwards 'c'. "That's an old unit of measurement, used up until just a few centuries ago," Klaus told her. "Most of the rest of these are old numerical symbols…It's as if someone was trying to solve a mathematical equation using measurements they found in these buildings."

"Ugh, math," Mint grumbled, rolling her eyes. "Whatever. You keep doing whatever with those doodles; I'm going to go ahead and see if I can actually find something."

"Ah…" Klaus hesitated, then said, "I'm not sure we should split up."

"What is with you people?!" Mint exclaimed, getting fed up. "There's nothing here but old rocks, doodles, and, _hopefully_, treasure! Why are you all afraid of your own shadows?!"

Klaus gave her an odd look. "Can you really not feel it?" he asked.

"Well, let's see," Mint said sarcastically, "I feel excited to be on the verge of world domination, I feel happy to be away from Maya and hunting for a [relic] again, I feel more energetic than I've ever been before, and I feel annoyed that _some_ people are being babies about a bunch of old rocks!"

"Mint…" Klaus took a moment to figure out how to put his point into words. "I'm not well-versed in the ways of magic here, but even I can tell that there's a powerful spell over this place - as far as I can tell, one to keep people out," he said at last. "Whether or not there's any real danger here, I can't say, but I know every fiber of my being wants to run away from this place as fast as I can whether it makes sense or not."

Mint shrugged. "Whatever," she said; "it's not bothering _me_. If anything, it's having the opposite effect on me. So you do what you want with your scribbles, I'm going to look for treasure." A smile slowly spread across her face. "Actually, if everyone who comes here wants to leave, there probably _is_ treasure here, probably not even too well-hidden!"

With that thought in mind, Mint all but skipped on ahead, thrilled to be there and looking for riches and power, leaving Klaus to decipher an ancient riddle while voices in his head told him to turn back if he valued his life.

~o~

Every moment outside the center of the ruins was nerve-racking for Rue and the family with him. None of them wanted to be there, and none of them had anything to do to pass the time. The air was almost suffocatingly still, the sun bright and hot; they ducked into shade provided by the surrounding ruins, but that offered only a little relief.

"What if dad and Mint don't find what they're looking for today?" Elena asked.

Rue sighed. "They'll come back tomorrow," he told her. "And I'll come with them, but you three should stay in Avalon."

Mira nodded.

"I thought it would be so cool to see these ruins," Prima Doll said sadly. "But, I can't even look at them. They scare me."

"Me too," Elena agreed.

"You'll be okay," Rue told them; "no matter what happens, I'll protect you."

None of them bothered to question whether or not something would happen at all - despite the emptiness of the place, all of them felt as though they _knew_ there was danger here.

Several more minutes passed in silence. It was very hot out, and all of them started sweating from more than just nerves.

"Whew," Rue said, breaking the stillness, "it's hot out here." He took off his hat and set it aside. His white hair was plastered to his head with sweat.

"Whoa!"

Rue turned to Elena. "What is it?" he asked.

"That stone on your forehead!" Elena exclaimed.

"Oh yeah." Rue suddenly felt embarrassed. "You've never seen it before, have you?"

"It's so pretty," Elena said, her normal smile brightening up her face again.

"Um…thanks," Rue said, feeling his cheeks get hot. His Dewstone was many things, but he'd never thought anyone would think of it as 'pretty' - not even sweet, silly Elena.

"It's usually not _this_ pretty," Prima Doll piped up.

Rue quickly turned at the young doll. "What do you mean by that?" he asked, confused almost to the point of alarm.

Prima shrugged. "I've seen it a couple of times, but it always looked like just a stone before," he said. "But right now, it's glowing and sparkling really brightly…it's hard to look at, even."

"Wh…?" Rue put a hand to his Dewstone. A tingle raced up his arm from where his fingertips brushed the Dewprism fragment that gave him life; it felt hot, almost too hot to touch. "I wish I had a mirror," he murmured.

"You could probably use it as a flashlight, even," Elena commented.

Curious now, Rue walked up to the half-crumbled wall that was providing them shade. Two steps before he reached it, he could see a blue light being cast on it from where he stood.

He shook his head. "It's never done this before," he told the others. "The only time it's ever acted like this was when Doll Master made me destroy the Book of Cosmos, or when I revived Claire…but I'm not doing anything right now."

"Rue…"

Rue turned to Mira.

The two looked at each other. Rue began to feel uncomfortable under Mira's probing gaze.

"Um, this stone is, uh, part of my body," he stammered at last. "It's a piece of the-"

"A piece of the Dewprism, yes, Klaus explained as much to me," Mira said in an odd tone of voice. "It's basically the reason you're alive, right?"

Rue nodded. "Yes," he said. "Valen made me from the Dewprism, me and many others. Because his [relic], the Dewprism, is a microcosm of the universe, he put fragments of it in each of us. It gives us powers, life, and…and will." He looked down. "It's my heart, basically. My heart, my brain…my soul. Even Valen didn't understand exactly what he was doing when he gave us these Dewstones. He didn't realize he was giving us the ability to think for ourselves." He sighed. "He was so powerful, in the instants before his body was destroyed by the other Aeons, not only did he manage to seal his spirit and the Dewprism in another dimension, he also managed to create us, _all_ of us, on the spot, and scatter us throughout the world, _and_ leave access points where we could bring him back. He had seconds at most to do it all…"

"Gee," Elena said, her eyes wide. "It's…hard to think about."

"Yeah," Rue agreed, still looking at the ground. "Valen was the most powerful Aeon who ever lived. He was able to harness the very essence of the forces that make up the universe and crystalize them into a [relic] - that's hard to think of on its own. But he didn't have much time to make us…I guess it's amazing he did it at all, even if he messed it up in some ways."

"Messed it up?" Elena repeated. "How did he do that?"

Rue looked at her. "Well, we have free will," he told her. "Each of us can choose to support or defy him. I'm probably the only one who never supported him, but each of his dolls are _able_ to turn their backs on him. I doubt he would have made us that way on purpose."

"Hmm…" Elena smiled. "I'm glad he did."

Rue's face was starting to feel even hotter than his Dewstone. "Thanks," he managed.

"But why is it acting up right now?" Prima asked, ruining the moment.

Rue shook his head. "I don't know," he replied. "I was born without my memories - another flaw that I guess happened because Valen had so little time. I have no idea why my Dewstone's glowing."

"Maybe it has something to do with whatever's wrong with this place," Elena suggested.

It was a silly idea from a silly girl, but Rue's eyes widened. "That actually makes sense," he said softly, almost to himself. "There's something unnatural going on here…maybe my Dewstone is reacting to it somehow." _But _why_?_ he wondered. _Is it just because it's magic, or does this place have some connection to the Dewprism or Valen in particular?_

_Ruenis should have come._ He didn't want to admit it, but now it was undeniable: They needed input from a Doll of Valen who actually remembered his master.

"Looking at that dew-rock actually kind of makes me feel better," Elena commented. She looked at her mother and brother. "Don't you think so, too?"

"Yeah," Prima agreed.

Mira nodded, then turned to Rue. "I think we're very lucky to have you along with us on this trip," she told him.

Rue could only manage another "Thanks." What he didn't say was that they'd probably much luckier still to be with a Doll of Valen who hadn't lost his memories. He wondered if he would ever be able to go about his life without the secrets of his past catching up with him…

~o~

Mint's bubbly feeling was starting to fade, as she came to the same dead end for what felt like the hundredth time.

"Ugh, why can't I stop going around in circles?" she exclaimed out loud, even though no one was there to hear or answer her. She stamped her foot in irritation. "This place is a maze," she grumbled. "Why is it a maze? Isn't one discouragement spell enough for whoever built this dump?" She frowned, then brightened up again. "Well, I guess if someone went to all the trouble to keep people away from here, they must have been hiding something good!" Yeah. It didn't seem so bad when she looked at it that way.

Now if only she had the faintest idea how to find what she was looking for.

Suddenly, with a stroke of brilliance rare for her (no matter what she might tell most people), Mint got an idea. She ran back to the entrance, where Klaus was still working through the scribbles on the walls.

"Klaus!" she called.

"Mint!" Klaus was visibly relieved to not be alone anymore. He took a minute to relax, then asked, "Did you find anything?"

Mint shrugged. "Just a maze," she told him. "I must have gone in the same circle a hundred times. I was wondering if maybe these doodles might have something to do with it."

Klaus brightened. "Mint, that's brilliant!" he exclaimed, turning back to the wall he'd just been studying. "That explains so much…Yes, I think you're on to something!"

Mint flipped her hair. "Hmph," she said, "of course I am. I'm a genius."

But Klaus wasn't even listening to her anymore, instead studying the wall with newfound intensity. "Yes," he murmured to himself. "If that's…then that means…" He turned to Mint. "I think I might be able to figure this out," he told her, "but it will take time. We should go back to Avalon and get something to copy these equations down on - that way I can study them at the inn."

"So we're done for today?" Mint asked, disappointed.

"We'll come back tomorrow," Klaus reassured her. "This is going to take some patience, but I think you've taken a good amount of guesswork out of it - time should be the only thing we need now."

"Alright!" Mint said happily. Sure, she'd rather get the [relic] now, but she'd waited years - she could wait a few more days.

"For now, let's go back to Avalon," Klaus said, already headed for the exit.

Mint followed.

~o~

Mint and Klaus barely managed to take two steps outside before they almost smacked into Rue.

"Doctor!" he exclaimed. "Mint! I was just about to come get you!"

"Why?" Mint asked.

Rue pointed. "The sun's starting to set," he told them; "we need to head back now."

"Agreed," Klaus said, and they joined Mira and the kids and started walking home without another moment's pause. Rue had to retrieve his hat, but he didn't fall behind.

"What's up with that rock in your head?" Mint asked Rue.

Rue shrugged. "I don't know," he replied; "it's been like this since we got here. At least, I think it has - it was like this when I took off my hat."

"Huh." Mint stared at it until Rue covered it with his hat again.

They walked quickly for a few minutes in silence, all eager to get out of the ruins before the sun completely set. Then, Rue edged closer to Mint and confided in her, "I think you were right. Ruenis should have come."

Mint looked at him. "Of course I was," she said automatically, though in reality, she was surprised. "Are you going to go get him?"

"Get him?" Rue repeated incredulously. "Mint, he and Claire are weeks away from here on foot!"

"Well, apparently we have a lot of time on our hands," Mint said, a hint of her familiar old grumpiness finally resurfacing. "The ruins are a huge maze on the inside, and Klaus thinks some scribbles we found on the walls might be the solution…and there are a _lot_ of scribbles." She sighed. "We're coming back tomorrow to copy them all down on paper; once we have them all, Klaus is going to work on them while we sit around doing nothing."

"Will it take weeks, though?" Rue asked.

Mint shrugged. "I dunno," she said. "Why don't you try transforming into something really fast and run back home that way?"

Rue blinked. "That's not a bad idea," he said, all but shocked that Mint had come up with something that made sense.

Mint didn't miss this, but for some reason, she decided to let it slide, and they all walked back to Avalon without another word, just barely managing to make it back to the inn before the last of the sun's rays disappeared from the horizon.


	5. Chapter 5

As it turned out, it took two full days to copy down all the scribblings inside the ruins of Ephlesia City, even with Klaus, Mint, and Rue all working together (Mint and Rue had no idea what they symbols they were copying meant, but they didn't need to understand them to transcribe them). Both days, Klaus had a lantern, Mint had her magic, and Rue simply left his hat in his room; as Elena had predicted, the way his Dewstone glowed in the ruins made it more than effective as a flashlight.

The effects the ruins had on the three never changed - Klaus and Rue never got more comfortable, and Mint never got down or tired. She didn't even complain about the tedium of copying down all the symbols scratched onto the walls, instead attending to her task with what could almost be called gusto. Rue found this all the more unsettling. This wasn't at all the pushy, bossy Mint he knew - she seemed to have no problems with working hard at a boring task, despite the long hours of studying the walls, bending over to look at some, standing on tiptoes to look at others…Mint actually got more done than Klaus or Rue did, all without a single word of complaint. It was as if the discouragement spell that covered the ruins was acting as an encouragement spell on her. Why this might be, no one could begin to guess, but it bothered Rue a lot.

Finally, when everything was on paper and in Klaus's room, everyone except him was free to do whatever they wanted until Klaus was done with his work. Away from the ruins, he was almost as enthusiastic as Mint, and he wouldn't have eaten or slept at all without Mira's pestering.

Rue, meanwhile, took Mint's advice and started running across the continent as a Saber Tiger. Between the speed and jumping distance of the beast, Rue was able to move no less than four times faster than he had on foot as a human. This still meant his journey took several days, of course, but he had no doubt that they needed Ruenis's help.

Mint passed her days sparring with Rod - she was so full of energy, nothing but fighting all day could drain her enough to sleep at night. Rod's self-constructed arsenal had become very impressive, and he used a different weapon every day, testing them against Mint's mettle and magic. She won about as often as she lost; Rod saw both outcomes as helpful to his work. Rod's camp was apparently far enough away from the ruins of Ephlesia City to not be affected by whatever curse afflicted the place; when Prima Doll finally asked, Rod only claimed to notice that Johnny Wolf seemed a bit more timid than normal.

Sometimes, Elena and Prima watched Mint and Rod fight; other days they went shopping or sightseeing again. There wasn't much left to do in Avalon, but anything other than visiting the ruins was fine by them.

And so everyone waited. Whether or not Rue managed to get home and back before Klaus finished deciphering the scribbles left by explorers past would change everything…

~o~

After a few weeks of running, sleeping, and even hunting and eating as a Saber Tiger, Rue made it back to Claire's house in the middle of the woods. He'd been running with such single-minded intensity that he nearly forgot to transform back into himself before he got to the door. By the time he remembered, Ruenis was already coming out to protect the house.

Rue transformed, still panting from his run. "Brother," he greeted.

"Rue?" Ruenis stopped short, looked surprised. "You're done?"

Rue shook his head. "No," he said, "I need your help. _We_ need your help."

Ruenis blinked. "You came all the way back just to ask for my help?" he asked.

Rue took a deep breath, then straightened, his wind back. "Brother, you said Valen did experiments in Ephlesia City long ago, yes?"

Ruenis nodded. "Is that all you wanted to ask me?"

Rue shook his head again. "No," he said. "I need you to…" He paused - he'd been about to ask Ruenis to come back to Avalon with him, but he still wasn't sure that was the best idea. "I don't know what questions I should be asking," he said instead, "and…there's something wrong with that place. And my Dewstone reacts weirdly when I'm there." He met Ruenis's eyes pleadingly. "You know I don't have my memories, brother," he said. "If…if something about the place has something to do with Valen, I don't have the information I need. And you do."

"Something's wrong with that place, you say?" Ruenis asked, his brow furrowing around his Dewstone. "You don't find it welcoming?"

"No!" Rue exclaimed. "Just being there scares me. It scares everyone, even as far away as Avalon."

"Avalon?!" Ruenis gave a start. "What's Avalon?"

"A big town near the ruins," Rue replied.

Ruenis's eyes widened. "There shouldn't be a town out there," he said, looking almost afraid. "No one is supposed to be there."

Rue shrugged. "No one _wants_ to be there, not really," he said; "everyone stays inside at night, no matter what. It's just home for some people."

It was Ruenis's turn to shake his head. "Human stubbornness," he mused out loud, more to himself than to Rue. "Even Valen underestimated it. Amazing." He gave his head a little shake, then looked at Rue again. "But it shouldn't be affecting you," he said. "That spell was meant to let only Valen and his people in - you should be fine."

"Well, I'm not," Rue said. "I can't stand it there."

"Hmm…" Ruenis pondered this for a minute. "I suppose…wait." He looked up again at Rue sharply. "Have you ever been subject to the doll-binding spell?"

Rue blinked. "Yes," he said. "Several times, actually - once by Valen himself. I broke free, though."

"You broke free…" Ruenis repeated.

Rue nodded. "My will was strong enough to break it. Valen was going to take over my body so he could use the Dewprism and destroy the world, and I…I couldn't let that happen."

"You are amazing, brother," Ruenis said softly. "To break the spell when Valen himself was the one who cast it…you are a marvel." He shook his head. "Perhaps that's why the discouragement spell on Ephlesia repels you - you've renounced Valen, so his spells may have renounced you in turn."

"Okay, but it doesn't bother Mint," Rue said. "Mint loves it there, weirdly. It's not even her normal enthusiasm - I've _never_ seen her so…_agreeable_. Ever."

Ruenis gave him an odd look. "Who is Mint?" he asked.

"That girl who came and-"

"No no, I remember her, but who _is_ she?" Rue pressed.

"Oh, uh, she's the crown princess of East Heaven Kingdom," Rue answered. "Er, former crown princess - I guess her father and the court decided she was too bossy and full of herself to be queen, so they gave the crown to her younger sister. That's why she's looking for a [relic] of her own."

Ruenis tilted his head. "That…doesn't make any sense," he said slowly. "The Kingdom of Sorcery was founded after the fall of the Aeons; royal or not, as far as that old enchantment is concerned, she's nobody. Unless…"

"Unless what?" Rue asked.

Ruenis shook his head. "Nothing," he said quickly. "It would be even more preposterous than…ahem." He cut himself off. "Even Valen's magic wasn't infinite, at least not before he created the Dewprism - my best guess is, perhaps the spell has a few chinks after all these millennia."

Rue nodded slowly. "Okay," he said. "So, what's in Ephlesia that's so important?"

"Did you find any of our brothers there?" Ruenis asked in reply.

Rue shook his head. "No, and I looked all over Avalon for days," he said.

"Not in the human town," Ruenis said; "the ruins themselves. Our brothers would be resting in the ruins - even if they've awoken, they would stay and guard the place."

"Why?" Rue asked. "Can Valen be resurrected from there?"

Ruenis blinked. "Of course he can," he said as though it were obvious, and Rue's heart sank. "But there's more there than just a revival point."

"Like?" Rue pressed.

Instead of answering, Ruenis turned around and walked back over to the house, then sat down on the front steps. Rue followed suit.

"Valen conducted many experiments in Ephlesia," Ruenis began. "In the beginning, Ephlesia City was an Aeon city, the most prosperous history has ever known. At first, Valen worked alongside the other Aeons that lived there, but as his interests and ambitions began to take unique turns, they became wary of him - especially our namesake, Ruehi."

"Ruehi?" Rue exclaimed. "Klaus told me about her. I thought it was weird that she shared our root name…We were named _after_ her?"

Ruenis nodded. "Valen was not ungrateful to those who lent him aid," he said. "Ruehi played a major part in his ability to create new, independent-minded beings; without her, he wouldn't have been able to create us, and he would be trapped in his dimension forever."

"So he was already working on making us before the Aeons attacked him?" Rue asked, surprised.

"Yes," Ruenis punctuated with a nod. "He worked with Ruehi and Vierna in the beginning, until they began to insist on holding him back with what they claimed were moral boundaries." A hint of disgust began to lace Ruenis's voice. "They were weak, and afraid. Valen's power was boundless, and because they couldn't keep up, they made up reasons why he shouldn't use his powers to their full potential."

Rue wasn't so sure that it was like that, but he knew the memories Ruenis had been given were from that particular perspective, and held his tongue. Seeing Ruenis's expression as he reviewed his planted memories, Rue began to appreciate how doggedly most Dolls of Valen pursued their purpose, and what he'd been spared by losing those memories. "So what did Valen do?" he asked instead.

"He cast them out," Ruenis replied with a shrug. "He tried to work alone in Ephlesia City, but the other Aeons wouldn't stop pestering him out of envy and cowardice, and eventually he became so frustrated that he cast a spell over all of Ephlesia that would keep out any and all creatures of any sort that weren't him or of his will or creation. The result is what you see there today." He sighed. "Valen worked there for many years after that, but what exactly he may have accomplished, our memories don't say. He abandoned the place to start work on the Dewprism, and never returned, as far as I know."

Rue sighed. "I wish I had those memories," he said. "Or at least, an objective version of them. Then I wouldn't have to stumble through things like this."

"Had you kept your memories, you would have remained Valen's slave," Ruenis pointed out. "Only because you were able to form your own opinion of him, rather than innately believe him to be a certain way, were you able to free us from our cursed fate. If you truly were able to break the doll-binding spell, even when it was cast on you by Valen himself, then I can say with some certainty that I envy _you_ for having _lost_ your memories."

"Thank you, brother," Rue said. "Is there anything else I should know about Ephlesia City before I go back? Like that maze…do you know the solution?"

"The maze?" Ruenis repeated. "I know its solution is very complicated…but what exactly it is, I can't say off the top of my head. I _can_ say that even if I did, you probably wouldn't be able to remember enough of it to get you through."

"What about guardians?" Rue asked. "That spell makes anyone who visits the ruins feel like some horrible demon is about to attack or something, but is there _actually_ anything to be afraid of?"

"Hmm…" Ruenis thought about this. "There may be some remnants of old experiments roaming those corridors," he said at last; "as for actual guardians intended as such, I'm not sure. Valen may have left some before moving on, or he may not. Keep in mind, brother, we aren't supposed to seek out Valen's work, only Valen himself - his studies and inventions are his to know, and his alone. The knowledge he left us is limited; the only information I have is an order that we are not to attempt to breach the maze ourselves."

Rue nodded. "Thank you."

"Will you come inside?" Ruenis asked, changing the subject. "You've been on quite a journey, and Claire misses you."

"Oh, ah…" Rue thought for a second. He _was_ tired, and he certainly missed Claire, but he got the feeling that the information he now had, minimal though it might be, was something he should try to get back to Klaus with as soon as possible.

"At least stay until tomorrow," Ruenis pleaded, standing up. "You've crossed more than half a continent, and will have to do so again when you leave. Claire worries about you. Please stay."

Rue hesitated for another moment, then nodded. "Okay."

~o~

As Ruenis opened the door to let Rue inside, and he went in to greet Claire and catch up, the newly-awoken doll felt a twinge of guilt.

_I'm sorry, brother,_ Ruenis thought, _but I can't let you go back there. You've seen too much already; it's better those humans die in a pointless search than that you join them._

He'd bought himself a few hours to come up with a plan to keep Rue from returning to Ephlesia. A few ideas began to form in his mind, but he'd have to act fast if he wanted to save his brother…

~o~

Mint had been away for over a month, and Maya's worry only grew with each passing day. Mint was dangerous, in ways not even she herself knew. But Maya knew, impossible though the knowledge was. She still had to read the note inside the silver envelope once or twice a day to confirm that yes, she had read it right. As for her father's diary, she had skimmed it before; now, she pored over it, reading every word whenever she had time - which was rare, as the task of ruling East Heaven was entirely on her.

Needless to say, sleep was nothing more than a fantasy for the young half-queen.


	6. Chapter 6

As far as Klaus could tell, the equations that had been written on the walls inside the ruins had been scratched there by numerous people, all trying and failing to get through the maze Mint had stumbled across. There was a pattern to all of it, a pattern many people apparently had tried to figure out, and none had succeeded. There was a strong chance that the solution to the maze wasn't actually written anywhere at all.

Still, with the work of many explorers all in front of him, Klaus felt some confidence that he could figure out the pattern. Already, some of the etchings on the walls had provided answers to where one ought to go in the maze, apparently found by trial and error - the explorers had left their findings scratched on the walls so they would remember what they'd already figured out every time they took another shot at it, and maybe figure out what the overall solution was.

What worried Klaus most was not the numbers or measurements that he had; of much greater concern were the few words previous explorers had left behind. Some were warnings of certain types of traps that were laid in certain places and how to bypass them; other notes simply were just one-word scrawls such as "beast" and "fog". Without more information, Klaus could only conclude that he needed Mint and Rue in there. In fact, he probably shouldn't even join them, but he wasn't going to sit back and let them risk their lives for artifacts like before, especially not when he was the one who had any knowledge whatsoever of what they were up against.

~o~

"Oof!"

Mint was knocked away a few feet and landed hard on her back.

"Sorry Mint, but that's my win," Rod said.

Mint forced herself into a sitting position. "Yeah…" she admitted. She felt just tired and sore enough that she thought she would sleep tonight, so it was time to turn in.

Rod chuckled and walked back to his tent (there were no caves out in the plains). "I gotta say, Mint, I've never seen anyone with a heart as fiery as yours," he told her over his shoulder.

She stood. "Not even yours?" she teased.

Rod laughed. "Nope, not even mine," he admitted, putting his latest creation away. "There's something about this place that's doin' ya good, Mint. I can't really put my finger on it, but there's a fire in you that wasn't there in Carona."

Mint shrugged. "Everyone else says this place is bad for your health," she grumbled as Rod started putting together a fire. She walked over and sat beside the fire pit. "I don't get it, though. Honestly, I've never felt better in my life. Well…" She hesitated, then finished, "When I was in Valen's fortress, I had this kind of energy. At least, before Valen left and took the Dewprism with him. After that, I…"

"You crashed," Rod said, nodding. "I remember."

"Yeah…" Mint looked into the fire, not even noticing the sunset. "It's like just being close to a [relic] makes me stronger…but that can't be it, because there are a ton of [relics] being kept at home." She frowned. "I've never really thought about it, actually, but…it's weird."

"Huh," Rod said. He stood up and gestured to the wood pile. "Could you, ah…?"

"Sure!" Mint pulled her Dual Halos back out and cast a basic fire spell. Within seconds, she had a good campfire going.

"Magic sure is handy," Rod commented.

"Yeah it is," Mint agreed, grinning.

"Hmm." He sat down. Johnny Wolf trotted over and curled up beside him. Rod gave him a pat, but was looking at Mint. "You don't suppose I could learn a trick or two?"

Mint shrugged. "I dunno," she said. "I can't teach you, if that's what you're asking. I don't really know how it works. Some spells, you can learn with practice and instruction, but I think you need to do or have something first…other magics are just part of the world, and every now and then a concentrated bit that a magician can use appears somewhere, but normal people can't do anything with it."

Rod was silent for a minute. "Magic may be useful," he said at last, "but there's something to be said for doing things the normal way."

"Like what?" Mint scoffed.

"It's just more rewarding to achieve something with normal hard work, rather than conjuring it out of nowhere," Rod said.

"Whatever." Mint stood up. "Well, it's late," she said, "and I should get back before anyone gets worried."

"Good night, Mint," Rod said, smiling at her.

She nodded. "Good night."

The sun was completely gone by now - there was only the bright moon and the twinkling stars in the sky now. It was more than enough light for Mint to see, almost as bright as day, and as she reached Avalon, she felt a little shiver down her spine.

She stopped, looked at the sky, and took a deep breath. It was beautiful here, and so quiet…but for her, the quiet was comforting. There _was_ something strange in the air, but it didn't bother her; it just felt like the world was waiting for something. It was a tingly feeling, like lightning was about to strike, but she found it exciting rather than scary. As she walked through the still, silent town, she could almost pretend that _she_ was the thing everyone was afraid of. She smiled at the thought.

Little did she know…

~o~

It was late. Rue was asleep in his old bed - Ruenis had managed to convince him to stay the night. Ruenis wasn't asleep, though; instead, he crept outside, wary of waking his brother.

On the porch, Claire leaned against the railing, gazing up at the moon. Ruenis knew she had heard him, but she didn't say anything. He walked up beside her and followed her gaze, leaning against the railing himself.

They stood in silence for a minute. After having the house to themselves for a couple of months, it was almost strange for Rue to be back, and they enjoyed the privacy they could have again now that he was asleep.

After a few minutes, Ruenis turned to look at Claire. He knew the story of how her mortal body had died, how Rue had taken her spirit into his Dewstone until such a time as he could use magic to revive her, and how Rue had used the Dewprism to give her new life. With the moonlight highlighting her dark hair brown with silver, her purple robe swaying slightly in the gentle breeze, her dark eyes shining with an inner light…he could believe that what was beside him had been created by the Dewprism. She was beautiful. She was perfect.

But there was something about her that still mystified him: Her kindness. She had taken Rue in just because he'd had nowhere to go, and even after learning about what Rue was and where he came from, she had been willing to take Ruenis in, too. Ruenis couldn't understand why a human would be so caring. In Valen's mind, humans had corrupted the world beyond repair - the only thing to be done was to destroy it all and purify it through the Dewprism to create a new world. In his mind, humans were selfish, careless, stupid, greedy…yet none of those things even remotely described Claire. And yes, her body had been rebuilt through the Dewprism, but her spirit had never changed - as a person, she was the same as she had been her whole life. Her house was turning into a nursery for Dolls of Valen who wanted their own lives, and she did nothing but support them. She didn't know him, and he didn't know her, but she treated him like family. Better than family, even - humans could be especially cruel to members of their own family. But Claire…Claire was something else. She didn't even have anything especially to gain from housing Valen's puppets - she could easily take care of herself, it wasn't as though she needed the boys to look after her. Her strength, coupled with such caring and compassion…Valen himself couldn't have begun to imagine one such as her. Even Ruehi had been nothing compared to this human woman.

_If only Father knew such people walked the earth,_ Ruenis thought wistfully. _Perhaps he wouldn't be so sure that there's nothing here worth salvaging._

It was then that Ruenis realized something: He didn't want Valen to return. Not because Rue had told him he needed to be his own person, not because he didn't have an innate drive to see Valen's dreams become reality…but because Valen's return would mean that Claire would have to die. He didn't want that. He wanted to protect her from his creator. He cared for her more than he cared for his father.

At that moment, Ruenis's will was truly sparked. Any lingering doubts he might have had about his duty being wrong vanished, and instead he had his own reason to walk the Earth, his own drive that came from his heart:

To be with Claire.

"Claire," he said aloud, softly.

She turned her brown eyes on him. "Yes?"

"I…" Ruenis swallowed, taking a moment to collect himself. "I need to tell you something," he said.

Claire smiled. "Well come out and say it, then," she told him.

Ruenis turned to look at the house, then looked back at her. "Rue can't leave," he told her. "He needs to stay here, away from Ephlesia City."

Claire blinked, a frown tugging at her lips. "Why?"

"Because…" Ruenis sighed. "It won't end well. At best, he and his friends will die; at worst, Valen will return, and _everyone_ will die."

"But why?" Claire asked, confused. "Rue already decided he wouldn't revive Valen…"

"He won't have a choice," Ruenis told her. He started talking quickly, as the secret he'd been holding in finally came out. "If he makes it to the [relic] held in the ruins, his Dewstone will crack the foundation of reality - Valen will have a way in. If he doesn't make it, then he and everyone with him will have been killed by the guardians." He told her about how he knew several of his brothers had died trying to penetrate Ephlesia - the central chamber was guarded by every sort of force imaginable, so that no one could take what belonged to Valen, but the [relic] there could act as a back door, if a fragment of the Dewprism reached it. Valen hadn't left the access point behind intentionally - the [relic] itself wasn't even his - hence the fact that several Dolls had tried and been killed, but it was a way, and if Rue made it through, his presence alone could easily tear the fabric of reality. It wasn't a hundred-percent guarantee, but it was likely, and it wasn't worth the risk.

Claire listened to all of this with a stern expression on her face. When Ruenis was done, she asked, "Why didn't you tell Rue this? Why did you mislead him? Did you want him to bring Valen back?"

"I…" Ruenis lowered his eyes. Yes, he'd been half-hoping that his brother's adventure would revive Valen. At the time, he still hadn't found a purpose besides the one he'd been made for. Now that he had, though, he needed to keep Rue away from Ephlesia. "Well…I wasn't sure. But I am now, and…" He blushed, turning away from Claire fully now, ashamed of what he'd almost done. "I don't want to admit to him that I lied," he said. "I…I want to find some other way of keeping him here."

Claire didn't respond to this for a minute. At last she said, "It's up to you to tell your brother you lied to him; I won't tell him for you. But I do think you should tell him the truth."

Rue looked at the sky. "I don't think I can," he said softly. "After all he's done for me…I don't want him to know that I almost betrayed him." He closed his eyes and took a breath. "Will you help me keep him here?" he asked Claire without looking at her.

"What do you expect me to do?" Claire asked.

Ruenis took another breath. This was going to be difficult…

~o~

Klaus had worked himself to sleep. Now, he was dreaming. The figures and warnings he'd been poring over swirled around him, colorful symbols on a black background, all dancing, mocking him - there was a rhythm to their dance, but he couldn't grasp it.

"Dance, old man!" a red division sign snickered at him.

"It's not that hard," said a blue 72.

"Around and around," trilled a golden 38 as it whirled around Klaus's head. "Around and around!"

"We're waiting," taunted a green letter B.

"But I…I don't know how…" Klaus stammered, taking a step back.

The letters and numbers and symbols laughed at him. A couple dozen of them grouped together in a swarm, then flew at him, knocking him to the ground.

"Dance, you fool!" they laughed.

"Around and around," the golden 38 still chirped, whizzing around Klaus's head like a top. "Around and around!"

Klaus clapped his hands over his ears, squeezing his eyes shut, but this did nothing to muffle the laughter. "Stop it!" he shouted. "Just tell me how to do it! I can't…!"

"Follow the steps."

A low voice rumbled through the space, silencing all the symbols. When Klaus opened his eyes, he found himself at his desk, sunlight streaming through his window.

He rubbed a hand over his face, trying to catch his breath. _What a weird dream,_ he thought. Rarely did his work find its way into his nightmares, and something felt especially strange about this one.

His gaze fell back to the various scribbles that covered dozens of sheets of paper in front of him.

_"Follow the steps."_

_"Around and around!"_

"Around and around…" he muttered to himself, picking up a sheet covered in numbers. There was the 38, and the 72, and the division sign…He tilted his head, as though that would change anything.

And it did.

Klaus blinked. It was as though a lens had slipped into place - suddenly, the pattern was so clear, so obvious…

He lurched to his feet, grabbing for new paper and pencils. He had it!


	7. Chapter 7

_Home_.

Even with the impending threat of Valen possibly returning and worries about ancient mysteries tied to his past, Rue felt truly relaxed being home. Even though he knew he couldn't run from whatever awaited him in Ephlesia, just being away from the place made it feel like he could breathe where he couldn't before. The simple life, out in the wilderness, with his brother and his sister/mother…to Rue, that was paradise. And he couldn't deny it: He didn't want to leave.

So, when morning came, and Ruenis begged Rue to join him hunting, it didn't take much persuasion for Rue to put off his trip.

"It's good to have you home again, brother," Ruenis said as he and Rue walked into the forest.

Rue nodded. "It's…nice to be home," he admitted. "I don't really want to go back…" He sighed. "I wish Valen could just stay out of my life."

Ruenis gave him an odd look. "You don't have to leave if you don't want to," he pointed out.

"Yeah, I know, but…I need to," he said. "I need to tell Mint and the Doctor what you told me about the ruins."

"They don't need that knowledge," Ruenis said. "Most of what they want to know is as much a mystery to me as it is to you."

"Yes, but if there's an access point to bring Valen back, they might accidentally trigger it," Rue said, finally giving voice to his fears. "I didn't mean to bring Valen back when I entered that fortress in the sky, but I nearly did. He…has a way of getting his way, even from people who aren't willing to do his bidding." He shook his head. "I wish he hadn't managed to save himself after I struck his spirit. I wish he'd just faded away into nothingness and left the world alone once and for all."

The two brothers walked in silence for a minute.

"Well, it's up to you," Ruenis said at last. "If you think going to the ruins would really serve to prevent Valen's return rather than allow it, then go. But be sure before you do."

"Hmm…" Rue considered this. It was a good point - his presence alone could trigger something. Still, if something _was_ going to happen, he'd rather be there to help stop it before Valen achieved his goals.

"I…never got to truly thank you, brother," Ruenis said after a minute.

Rue looked at him. "Huh?"

"For bringing me here after you woke me," Ruenis explained. "To Claire." An odd expression came over his face. "She's an amazing woman," he said, almost dreamily. "Father believes humans are vile and selfish, but Claire…Claire couldn't be more different."

Rue shifted uncomfortably. His own relationship with Claire had always been platonic, a family bond, and he wouldn't have had it any other way, but something about his brother's manner suggested that he felt differently. "She is…very kind," he agreed. "I owe her a lot, for taking me in when she found me collapsed in the snow."

"And even now that she knows what we are, she was willing to take me in as well," Ruenis added. "I still can't imagine why she would be so welcoming to people like me - you, she knew before even you knew what you were or where you came from, but me…"

Rue nodded. "It's people like Claire who make this world one worth living in," he agreed, unaware of how precisely this reflected Ruenis's own sentiments.

"Yes…" Ruenis's gaze became distant. He looked so deep in thought, Rue didn't say another word until they reached the stream where they usually hunted for food.

~o~

When Mint came downstairs for breakfast early in the morning and found Klaus there and waiting for her, she knew right away that the wait was over.

"Alright!" she sang. "Way to go, Klaus!"

Klaus gave an embarrassed smile. "Yes, I think I have it figured out," he confirmed.

"So what's the trick?" Mint asked, sitting down beside him.

Klaus took out a bunch of notes. "The maze may appear linear from the inside, but-"

"Linear?" Mint repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"Er, made up of straight lines," Klaus clarified. "Every passage and wall looks straight and flat."

Mint nodded. "Yeah, so?"

"It's an illusion," Klaus told her. He took out a map he had drawn just minutes ago using the various measurements on the walls to test his theory, and he went on to explain that each of the points explorers had found to provide access to the next tier of the maze, if all the measurements were correct, followed a circular pattern. Some of these points appeared to be solid walls, others not, but it was all irrelevant; and if someone followed any path other than a spiral, the maze would magically bring them back to the start. "It's really quiet ingenious," he concluded; "easy to remember, but very difficult to figure out from scratch."

"_And_, once you _have_ figured it out, you know what the entire path will be," Mint added excitedly.

Klaus nodded, smiling. "Exactly," he said. "Assuming the pattern continues, it should be a simple matter to completely bypass the entire network."

Mint sprang to her feet and did a little dance. "Woo-hoo!" she cheered. "[Relic], here we come!"

"We don't know that what's being guarded is a [relic]," Klaus reminded her, getting to his feet, "but whatever's in there, yes, we should be able to get to it now."

"Then let's go!" Mint exclaimed, breakfast forgotten. "We can go right now!"

"Ah…" Klaus hesitated. "I…think we should wait for Rue."

Mint rolled her eyes. "He could be weeks away from coming back, for all we know," she said. "If he's not here to join us, that's his loss."

But Klaus shook his head. "Mint, there's more to the maze than the path itself," he told her. "There are various other roadblocks - some mechanical, some living, some magical. I don't really know exactly what's waiting for us in there, but I'd be much more comfortable if Rue came along as well."

Mint started to argue, the paused to think for a minute. "What if I could find someone else to come with us who can fight?" she asked at last. "Someone who's actually here?"

Klaus blinked. "Well…if they'd be willing, then…I suppose," he said hesitantly. In truth, he trusted Rue a lot more than any stranger Mint could find, and the maze was dangerous enough without having to worry about trust, but he knew she had a point about not knowing when Rue would get back.

"Then I have the perfect idea," Mint said, grinning. "Wait here, I'll be right back."

And with that, she ran off.

~o~

"Have you thought more about the solution to that maze?" Rue asked.

The two brothers had finished hunting, and were working together to carry a large stag back home - more than enough meat for three.

Ruenis looked at Rue. "Does this mean you're going back?" he asked in reply.

"Um…yes," Rue said after only a moment's hesitation. He'd weighed his options while stalking their catch, and he'd made up his mind.

Ruenis sighed. "The maze of the Ephlesia City ruins is too complicated to explain," he told Rue. "The basic principal is, nothing you see can be believed, and the overall path is in an elliptical spiral. But it's not that simple. There are steps to take in numerous places."

"What sort of steps?" Rue asked.

Ruenis shook his head, signaling that he would shrug were it not for their load. "I can't explain it," he said. "They can be figured out when you reach them, but not easily. But, brother, you really shouldn't trouble yourself with such matters," he said abruptly. "Stay here with us, where you belong. You don't need to trouble yourself with Valen's mess any longer."

Rue sighed. "Mint's going to go whether I'm there or not," he said. "She might be bossy, but I couldn't have saved Claire without her; I'm not sure whether or not I consider her a friend, but if nothing else, I owe it to her to help her out."

Ruenis snorted. "It's people like her who convinced Valen that the world as it is is beyond saving," he said. "It's people like Claire who make him wrong, but you shouldn't feel any obligation to a brat like her."

Rue blinked, surprised at the venom in Ruenis's voice. "What do you have against Mint?" he asked.

Ruenis sighed again. "Against her personally? Nothing," he replied. "It's just that Valen hates people like her…people who think they have a right to judge others as inferior to themselves, and who act as if they have a right to decide others' lives."

"That's pretty much Valen in a nutshell," Rue pointed out.

But Ruenis shook his head. "No, no, Valen just doesn't have any reason to believe that destroying everything and starting over from scratch isn't the best option at this point," he said. "After the way he was betrayed, even by his closest…associates, he has no faith in the virtue of any heart - human, doll, Aeon, _anyone_. Again, I agree that he's wrong, but…more often than not, trusting someone is a bad idea; they will always think of themselves first, and will betray you as soon as they have a reason. The world is so full of such cruelty, were it not for the existence of people like Claire, all of existence _would_ be better off wiping the slate clean and starting over."

Rue stared at his brother so intently he nearly tripped over a rock. It was strange, now that he thought about it, but he'd never really considered Valen to be a person, one with a story and a life, relationships and weaknesses. Had he in fact been hurt by someone, _before_ deciding he wanted to reign over all of existence as a god?

And Mint _was_ the greedy, treacherous type, even he couldn't deny that. And yet…even as he thought this, Rue couldn't help but remember the way she'd stood beside even Maya - whom she seemed to hate - when faced with Valen's evil plan. She had chosen the good of the world - and yes, perhaps herself, but still - over her vicious feud with her sister. In the end, maybe she wasn't so bad after all…

"You should only pledge allegiance to those deserving of your loyalty," Ruenis was saying. "Mint isn't worth risking your life and leaving your family. Besides…" He hesitated.

"What?" Rue asked, getting nervous.

Ruenis took a deep breath. "Besides…with your…consent, I…would like to ask Claire to marry me," he confessed.

"_WHAT_?!"

This time, Rue _did_ trip over a rock, or perhaps it was only his own feet. In any case, he was sent tumbling to the ground in shock. The burden the two brothers had been carrying followed him, and he had to struggle for a few seconds to get out from under the dead animal. When at last he managed to get to his feet, his mind was still reeling.

"You want to do _what_?" he exclaimed, certain he had misheard.

Ruenis shifted uncomfortably and looked away. "I realize…the circumstances aren't…exactly…normal," he stammered. "But I…"

"Ruenis. Brother," Rue said, trying to stay calm. "You haven't even been awake for a whole year yet."

"Yes, I'm aware of that, but-" Ruenis closed his eyes and took a breath. "When you woke me, you told me to look for a new meaning in life, besides serving Valen," he said, meeting his brother's eyes now. "I have found it. I only realized it recently, but I have found my own reason for living: her."

Rue closed his eyes and shook his head. "It doesn't work like that," he said.

"As if you have more experience than me?" Ruenis countered.

Images came unbidden to Rue's mind: Innocent gray eyes, pink hair, a ditzy smile…"Well, no," he managed, forcing his thoughts back to the matter at hand, "but-"

"You shouldn't judge me," Ruenis said, getting angry now. "Especially not when you don't understand what you're making a judgement about."

Rue blinked. "Ruenis, I…I'm not…_judging_ you, I just don't think things have had time to take their course yet," he said, trying to reason with him. "If you feel that way about Claire, you should…I don't know…talk to her about it, or something." He shook his head again. "I'm not sure what you should do, but proposing marriage out of nowhere like this isn't right, I know that much."

"Perhaps we should leave that up to her," Ruenis all but snarled.

"Brother, you asked for my consent, and I am not giving it to you," Rue said sternly. "I'm sorry, but as your older brother, I have to be serious about this. If you have those sorts of feelings for Claire, spend more time with her, court her," _but please don't do it in front of me,_ he resisted adding, "and if your feelings stand the test of time, _then_ ask her to marry you. Not now."

"How do you know I haven't courted her already?" Ruenis argued. "You've been gone for two months, and you haven't been home long enough to know where we stand right now."

"_Have_ you courted her?" Rue countered.

"_Yes_," Ruenis snapped.

The two faced off for a minute. Then, Rue sighed and picked up the stag they'd been carrying, slinging it over his shoulders and carrying it on his own. "Fine," he said, "go ahead and ask her if you want. But don't get your hopes up."

Ruenis nodded, still glaring, and they went home.

~o~

"_There_ you are."

Mint walked over to the couple in the local tavern. "I've been looking everywhere for you," she told them.

"Well, look who it is," said Belle. "Long time, no see." Her eyes narrowed. "Not long enough."

Mint shrugged. "I'm not exactly thrilled to see you, either, you old bag," she said bluntly. "But I need your help."

Belle stood up abruptly, her face twisting with rage. "What did you call me?" she snarled.

Mint smiled - Belle was irrationally sensitive about being called 'old'. For a minute, she considered continuing to tease her old rival. Sense won out, though, and she just said, "Never mind. I just wanted to invite you two to join Klaus and me in the Ephlesia City ruins." _If you're not too old for it,_ she resisted adding.

"What?" Belle's partner (in god-only-knew-what), Duke, stood up, too, joining the conversation. "You want us to come along on a treasure hunt?"

"Yeah," Mint said, not even trying to pretend to be happy about it. "Rue's gone, and I don't feel like waiting for him, but Klaus doesn't want to go in there without some muscle, so I figured I should invite you." She shrugged again. "If you don't want to come, I'll just ask Blood and Smokey. I've seen them around here and there, and at least they can swing a sword." This was mostly a bluff - she would have to be truly desperate to ask for help from the two bottom-feeder bandit brothers, and they probably wouldn't accept even if she did, or at least not without significant bribing.

"We've already been to the ruins," Belle told Mint. "It's a maze in there - we've been trying to figure it out for weeks."

Mint grinned. "Well, do I have news for you," she said happily: "Klaus solved the puzzle. He can get through the maze no problem."

"Really?" Duke gave a start. "That's crazy!"

Belle actually looked impressed. "Well then," she said, "I guess you've bought our help."

Mint's grin widened. "Great!" she said. "Come on, we're going right now!"

"_Now_ now?" Duke exclaimed.

Mint rolled her eyes. "Duh," she said. She turned to go. "Come on!"

Belle and Duke looked at each other for a minute. This was all very sudden, but then again, they _were_ desperate - they'd been traveling the world for ages in search of treasure worth hunting, and had left a long string of serious debts in their wake. They were running out of places to go to where they weren't wanted for payments.

"Alright," Belle said at last. "Lead the way."

~o~

_I can't take it anymore._

When Maya woke up that morning, that was the first thought in her head. And it was true. She had read her father's journal cover-to-cover, and she still didn't know what to do; she needed to ask for help. Sure, she had her duties as queen of East Heaven, but one of those duties was to oversee all magical and Aeon-related artifacts and phenomena in the world, and if nothing else, this certainly qualified as _that_.

So, she gave instructions to the other members of the High Council to oversee standard affairs while she was gone, packed her father's journal and the silver envelope, and headed out to see Ruenis.


	8. Chapter 8

There was tension in Claire's house that night between Rue and Ruenis. The two brothers hardly looked at each other, even when they all sat down for dinner that night.

"What has gotten into you boys?" Claire asked, noticing this. "Is something wrong?"

Rue shot a glare at Ruenis, which Ruenis returned. Neither spoke.

"Oh come now, you're being childish," Claire chided. "What's the matter?"

Ruenis sighed. "Claire," he said slowly, looking at his plate.

"Yes?" Claire asked, hoping to get him to look at her when he spoke to her.

Look at her he did, his eyes full of an adoration and affection that startled her. "I realize this is…somewhat sudden," he told her, "but I…" He hesitated. Rue prayed he'd see reason and abandon the idea, but when Ruenis took another breath and continued, it was clear that he'd made up his mind. "I realize I haven't been part of this world for very long," he said, "and that I've known you for only a matter of months. But, as I've told you in part, I was given memories and knowledge such that I would function as an adult in society…and though my father was thorough in his own mind, none of what he left me could have prepared me to meet one such as you."

Claire blinked. "I…um…"

"You knew nothing of me but that I was created to bring about the end of the world, yet you welcomed me here," Ruenis continued. "You've given me a home and a place in the world, the likes of which I could never have imagined. You are kind and generous beyond words. You are also strong, wise…beautiful…" Claire blushed. "So, though it may be sudden, I…would like to ask for your hand in marriage."

And there it was. It had actually been said. Rue could hardly believe it. He stared at Claire, wondering what her reaction could possibly be. Most people in this situation would laugh, but Claire _was_ very kind-hearted, and she wouldn't want to hurt Ruenis's feelings. But surely she wouldn't _accept_ - that would be insane!

…Right?

"Ruenis, I…" It was Claire who hesitated now.

Seconds passed, each one doubling Rue's panic. Why didn't she just say no? It wasn't _that_ hard…

"I'm…very touched by your words," she said at last, and to Rue's alarm, she smiled at Ruenis. "I think you give me too much credit, but…if you're sure, then yes. I will marry you."

Rue's jaw hit the floor. This was impossible. This was _ridiculous_! This was…! "I'm going to bed," he said abruptly, standing up.

"Rue…"

Rue and Claire's eyes met. She almost seemed to be apologizing, but for the first time in his life, Rue didn't care. He turned his back on them both and went to bed without another word.

~o~

After Ruenis finished cleaning up after dinner, he went outside and joined Claire on the porch again. She'd grown very fond of just staring at the sky at night before going to bed, and she was there again tonight, looking as though she were trying to divine some hidden meaning in the stars.

He stood beside her. "Thank you," he said softly.

Claire glanced at him. "You're welcome," was all she said in return.

Ruenis hesitated, then asked, "I'm grateful for your help, but…why are you willing to go through with this? I know you'd rather I just tell my brother the truth…why are you going along with my plan?"

She closed her eyes and smiled. "It's not my place to tell either of you what to do," she said. "I trust you to know what to do when the time is right."

Ruenis flushed at her implied meaning - that she expected him to call the wedding off before it actually happened. "Claire…I know I said I was going to do this to keep my brother here, but…make no mistake: I meant everything I said tonight," he confessed to her.

Claire opened her eyes and looked at him, her smile taking on an odd manner. "Yes," she said softly, "I know."

"I would have liked to court you first," Ruenis went on, unable to stop now. "I hope we can still do this in a reasonable manner…"

Claire chuckled. "Have you noticed you start using bigger words when you get nervous?" she asked, almost teasingly.

"I…" Ruenis's blush deepened. No, he hadn't noticed that, actually…and suddenly, his admiration for the woman before him deepened into something more personal - a feeling that she understood him better than anyone else.

He couldn't say that, though. Instead he said, "You'll help make sure Rue stays until it's done, won't you?"

"Yes, I'll make sure he doesn't run off," Claire reassured him, still smiling.

"Thank you." And that was all he could say.

~o~

"How big _is_ the maze, anyway?"

Klaus, Mint, Belle, and Duke were walking through the outskirts of Ephlesia City; already, everything was still and silent and dead. Mint's search for Belle and Duke had actually taken a little time, so it was just past noon.

"I mean, I don't want to be stuck in there when night falls," Duke went on.

"Oh, grow up, you big baby," Mint sneered.

"Actually, I'm with Duke," Belle said.

Mint gave a start. Belle was usually as tough as Mint, and was especially free with her verbal abuse of Duke; her agreeing with him on this matter was the biggest surprise yet.

"What is with you?" Mint asked. "Are you getting too old for treasure hunting?"

She expected to get a rise out of Belle. Instead, Belle just shook her head. "I don't know what's wrong with _you_, but anyone in their right mind would want to get as far away from this place as possible at the best of times," she said.

Mint stopped. "Seriously?" she asked. "You're not even going to get on my case about calling you old? You're really _that_ freaked out by this place?"

"How are you not?" Belle demanded, a bit of life coming to her now. "I always knew you were a nutcase, but how can you not be bothered by the fact that this place is full of spirits that are going to burst out of the ground any minute and eat our souls?"

Mint laughed. "Spirits that are going to eat our souls?" she repeated. "Is that really what this place feels like to you?"

"Yes!" Belle exclaimed. She turned to Klaus, who had stopped to allow the exchange. "Tell her, Doc. This place is bad news!"

"I feel the same way," Klaus confirmed, nodding, but before Mint could say anything, he added, "but I also know that this feeling is caused by a magic spell. Knowing doesn't do much to counter it, but it helps fight it a little."

"Are you _sure_?" asked Duke, who was almost literally shaking in his boots at this point.

"_Yes_!" Mint said impatiently. "Now come on! The longer we talk, the longer we'll be here." Not that that was a bad thing in her book, exactly, but she hoped it would spur her companions back into motion.

It did.

Once inside, Klaus took out his lantern, and Mint, Belle, and Duke conjured up different forms of werelight. Belle was a magician of sorts, but she worked without anything to channel her magic like Mint's Dual Halos. Duke technically wasn't a magician, but he had been born with a unique power: the ability to copy the mindset and abilities of any other person - even if that person was fictional. He was also an avid reader of fantasy novels, which made his power that much more potent and useful. Currently, he was channeling the essence of a warrior-mage from one of his most recent reads - the character himself lived on the boundary of Light and Darkness, forever doomed to be torn between the two, trying to find his own identity on a series of breathtaking adventures. Duke didn't have to deal with the Light/Dark split, though - he only copied the character's powers. He could be choosy like that.

"Alright," Klaus said, taking the lead. "We take the first left, but remember that this is the last time we'll be able to trust anything about what we see - from then on, we'll have to move carefully to stay on the path."

"Got it," Mint said, working hard to resist the urge to jump for joy. Finally, _finally_, it was happening. She was going to get a [relic] of her very own and conquer the world!

~o~

Maya didn't have time to sent a letter to Claire's cabin, since the cabin was so out of the way from even the nearest town or village. Unfortunately, for the same reason, she couldn't be sure enough of where exactly it was to teleport herself there, either. So, though it would be difficult, she would have to make some of the trek on foot.

She teleported herself to the nearest settlement, then immediately started walking. The cabin was a few days away, but she had no choice. She was dealing with something far beyond her ability to understand or control, and only one who knew Valen could give her answers.

~o~

The ruins were eerily quiet on the inside, same as the outside - not even the footsteps of the group attempting to breach it echoed off the walls. This was more than just unsettlingly strange, though; now, they knew it was actually a clue that the walls weren't what they seemed to be.

Klaus was very careful with every step he took, making sure to stay on a perfectly elliptical path regardless of what the walls suggested. At first, Mint, Belle, and Duke were hesitant to follow him when he started walking towards walls at an angle, but when he passed through them as though they weren't there - which they weren't - the others got used to it and started completely ignoring what their eyes told them.

After what seemed like an hour, Klaus stopped.

"What's the matter, old man?" Belle asked.

Klaus turned to his companions. "Around here is where explorers started making notes of roadblocks," he told them. "Some were more specific than others about what they found, but some of them also completely contradicted each other, so we need to be especially careful from here on out, ready for anything."

"Piece of cake," Mint said dismissively.

Belle and Duke were silent, a slight hardening of their expressions the only sign that they were prepared to spring into action at any moment.

"Then let's go," Klaus said, and they resumed walking.

A minute later, the first sound echoed through the building: The screech of some sort of creature, and one that sounded unfriendly to say the least.

The four explorers froze.

"Klaus…get behind us," Mint said softly.

Klaus obliged, just as the skeleton of a tremendous flying beast came swooping down at them from behind a fake wall.

~o~

Rue and Claire were walking to the nearest town, an awkward silence stretching between them. Most of the time, Claire and the brothers kept to themselves out in the wilderness, but if Claire and Ruenis were going to get married, they had to make arrangements with civilization. Claire had talked Rue into helping her prepare…and though Rue had consented, he didn't like it.

"Claire," he said at last, "I don't think-"

"I know this seems strange," Claire said, "but it's our choice."

"I don't understand, though," Rue said.

"There _is_ no understanding," Claire told him. "Not from the outside, at least. Someday you'll understand, when you find the one you want to marry."

Again, Elena's face flashed before Rue's eyes. "This is so sudden, though," he argued pleadingly. "Don't you think you're taking things a bit too fast?"

Claire sighed, not looking at him. "No," she said, and that was all.

Something seemed off to Rue, but before he could figure out what to say, a new voice broke in:

"Rue!"

Rue and Claire stopped short. Running towards them, an ancient Book tucked under her arm, was Mint's younger sister, Maya.

"Maya?" Rue exclaimed, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"Rue!" Maya called again, running up to him. "I didn't realize you would be back here." She looked around. "Where is M…my dear sister?"

"She's still in Avalon," Rue told her. "I had to come home for…something." He glanced at Claire. "And now I have to stay here for a wedding."

"A wedding?" Maya asked, her own predicament momentarily forgotten. "Who's getting married?"

"Claire and Ruenis," Rue answered.

Maya glanced at Claire. "Where _is_ Ruenis?" she asked.

"Back home," Rue answered. Claire said nothing.

Maya shook her head. "I would offer my congratulations, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to postpone your plans," she said. "Something of great urgency has come up, and I need the help of a Doll of Valen who has kept his memories as such."

Rue blinked. "What?" he asked, thrown for a loop. "Why? What's going on?"

Maya looked at him for a long minute. "You may not have your memories," she finally said slowly, "but you _do_ know Valen - and my sister, for that matter." She sighed, then took out an envelope that glowed with a silvery light and a leather-bound tome. "Here," she said, holding both out to Rue. "_This_ is what's going on."

Rue took the letter and book. Unsure what to do, he started by opening the letter and taking out the note. As he read it, his eyes grew wider and wider, and he took a step back in shock. "This isn't…?" he could barely manage, glancing at Maya.

Maya nodded solemnly.

"_Mint_?" Rue exclaimed.

"Yes," Maya confirmed, nodding again.

Rue opened the book and glanced through it. He didn't have to read very thoroughly to get the rest of the story. "Oh my…" It was as though his whole world had been turned upside down, and everything he'd thought he once knew had suddenly been proven a lie.

"What is it, Rue?" Claire asked, speaking at last.

Rue could only hold out the letter and book to her. She took two minutes to read as much as she needed to, her eyes perfect circles of shock by the time she was done.

"I was hoping Ruenis could help me figure out what to do," Maya said at last.

Rue nodded and turned around. "Come on," he said, "I'll take you to him."

"_We'll_ take you to him," Claire corrected. Rue glanced at her and nodded again.

"_Thank you_," Maya said, having to fight the urge to collapse with relief - not having to handle this on her own anymore was a tremendous comfort. If only the handling of it itself could prove to be half so simple…


	9. Chapter 9

"Piece of cake."

Mint did a little victory twirl as the enormous winged skeleton collapsed to the floor in a heap of ancient bones.

"Easy for you to say," Belle grumbled, nursing her severely burned right arm. "_We_ found its weak spot."

"Yeah yeah, thanks for that," Mint said dismissively.

"Damn it!" Belle cursed, wincing as she tried to bend her arm. "I'll be useless from here on out, all because _you_ didn't think to shoot it in the _mouth_ when it tried to barbecue us!"

"Oh, quit whining," Mint sneered, charging up her Dual Halos and firing a healing spell at Belle. "There, now can we move on?"

Belle studied her flawlessly healed arm for a moment. "Yeah," she said grudgingly. She glanced at Duke. "You good to go?"

Duke nodded.

"Alright." Belle turned to Klaus, who had stood back as far as possible without deviating from the path. "Lead on, old man."

"You aren't in charge here," Mint pointed out.

"That's okay," Klaus said quickly, hurrying forward. "Let's just keep moving."

And they did.

~o~

Ruenis was inside when Rue and Claire came home leading Maya. Instead of opening the door, Rue just knocked.

"Ruenis," he called. "Come out, we need your help."

Seconds later, Ruenis opened the door and stepped outside. "I wasn't expecting you back so soon," he commented.

"Yeah, something came up," Rue said, and he held out the silver envelope and leather-bound tome Maya had given him.

Ruenis's eyes widened at the sight of the envelope. "Where did you get that?" he asked in a breathless whisper.

Rue blinked. "You know about this?"

Ruenis nodded. "Of course I do," he said. "I know all about it - where it comes from, and what it says, every word. You would, too, if you hadn't lost your memory. But where did you…?"

Rue gestured to Maya. "She brought it," he told his brother.

Ruenis looked at Maya. "I remember you," he said. "You were the one who found me while I slept. You brought Rue to me."

Maya nodded. "Yes," she said. "It's good to see that you've taken so well to living here. I understand congratulations are in order for you and Claire?"

"Hmm? Oh, that," Ruenis said. "Yes, thank you. But that's not important right now. This letter…Does this mean you _found_…?"

"My father was the one who found it, actually," Maya told Ruenis. "He passed away recently, which is how I gained possession of the letter."

Ruenis blinked. "But…"

"Here," Rue said, holding out the book. "This was her father's journal - it explains the rest." He hesitated as Ruenis took the book, then added, "It's Mint."

"Mint?!" Ruenis exclaimed. "But how?"

"Read it," Rue said.

Ruenis cast an uncertain glance across his brother, his fiancée, and the co-queen of East Heaven Kingdom. Then, slowly, he opened the book and began reading.

As the pages turned, Ruenis's eyes widened more and more, much as Rue's had upon reading the letter itself. He read remarkably quickly; Rue guessed it was part of having retained the memories Valen had planted, one of them enabling him to read without his needing to learn how. When he was done, he was very still for a moment, then slowly looked up at Rue.

"Rue," he said in an eerily calm voice. "Brother."

"Yes?" Rue asked.

"We need to get to Ephlesia, right now," Ruenis told him, still disturbingly calm.

Rue blinked. "What?" he asked. "Why?"

"To stop Valen," his brother replied.

~o~

"Gah, _another_ one?" Mint exclaimed. "Come _on_!"

They'd been following the path for hours, and it was no longer abandoned - monsters of all sorts pounced from behind the illusory walls almost constantly, making the going very, very slow. In this case, for about the twentieth time, the four explorers were attacked by an enormous creature that resembled a dog with a birdlike face. Its legs and jaws were powerful, and its underside was armored, but its back was vulnerable; this meant two people had to capture all of its attention so the third could sneak up behind it. No one person fighting the thing could have done more than survive for a few minutes against it without landing any blows.

It was Duke's turn to strike while Belle and Mint made a show of casting flashy spells to get its attention. They'd perfected the technique by now, and it was dead within minutes, but still, it was getting exhausting.

"I'm getting really sick of this," Belle grumbled.

Even Mint had to agree. The onslaught was all but continuous at this point, and none of the guardians were easy to kill.

"It's hard to believe so many monsters could be in one place," Duke commented.

"I'm more concerned with the fact that monsters are the only roadblocks we've faced so far," Klaus said, stepping forward.

"The _only_ roadblocks," Belle repeated, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, sure, it's not like we need some other sort of challenge, these things are a breeze!"

"I'm not belittling what you're all having to do," Klaus said, "but many notes left behind by previous explorers suggested all sorts of other traps."

"I can't believe anyone else would have made it this far," Mint commented.

"I agree," Klaus said, nodding, "which leads me to wonder how consistent the roadblocks for this maze are."

"What, you think every step we take makes some random form of deterrent appear, and we've just happened to be getting monsters?" Belle asked.

"That's _exactly_ what I think," Klaus replied. "It would go a long way towards explaining why some of the notes were completely contradictory."

Everyone fell silent, absorbing this. If Klaus was right, then in a way, they _had_ been very lucky so far to get only monsters that could be killed - Mint, Belle, and Duke were fighters, that was their strength. But if any random step could bring about something that couldn't be approached with force…

_"Follow the steps."_

The voice from the end of Klaus's nightmare echoed in his head. "Let me think about this for a minute," he said, sitting down on the dirty stone floor.

"Now you're talking," Belle said, slumping to the ground, relieved for the break. Even Mint sat down, her energy finally starting to run out.

"How long have we been in here?" Duke asked, sitting down on a chunk of wall that had fallen long ago. "It feels like we've been at this for days."

"I doubt it's been _that_ long," Klaus said, "but I do think we've been here for hours."

"So night's probably fallen by now," Belle said.

Mint looked at her. "Still scared of the dark?" she teased.

"No," Belle said, looking surprised to be saying it.

"Yeah, me neither," Duke said.

"I think we've gotten past that particular spell," Klaus agreed. "Right now, I'm just tired, but I don't feel like I'm about to be attacked by horrific demons…Which is ironic, considering we've been under constant attack by horrific demons for a while now."

"They're not _demons_," Mint said dismissively, tossing her hair. "Guardians, yeah, but I've fought worse."

This was met with silence, all four members of the party lost in their own trains of thought.

_"Follow the steps."_

Klaus knew there was some sort of trick here, one that had to do with that clue he'd been given at the very end of his nightmare. The path was a perfect spiral, that much had already been proven.…but were they walking it the wrong way? Was there some pattern they were supposed to follow _while_ staying within the spiral path?

_"Dance, old man!"_

Steps. Dance steps. Perhaps…?

A theory began to form in Klaus's head, but he was tired. He didn't know it, but it was well past midnight on the outside, and time was one thing not affected by the magic of the ruins. He'd already neglected sleeping for weeks trying to solve the equations previous explorers had left behind; even his considerable stamina for his hobby was running dry.

"I think…we should try to get some sleep," he said at last.

Mint, Belle, and Duke stared at him. "On _what_?" Mint scoffed.

Klaus sighed. "I know it's not comfortable, but I'm too tired to make sense of what I think I'm beginning to figure out," he told them. "I know I'm onto something, but I just…can't…grasp it." He shook his head, then surprised his companions by lying down on the cold, hard floor, using his small pack as a makeshift pillow.

It wasn't comfortable, and it wasn't practical, but they had no choice. One by one, Belle, Duke, and Mint followed suit. None of them had prepared to be in the ruins for more than a few hours - they had all assumed they'd be out by nightfall.

Oh well.

~o~

"So you're telling me that my Dewstone will react with the [relic] in Ephlesia City to bring Valen back?" Rue asked.

He, Ruenis, Claire, and Maya were all inside Claire's cabin, seated around the table.

Ruenis nodded. "_Any_ Dewstone, for that matter," he confirmed. "Unfortunately, I can't guarantee that Mint's presence won't have the same effect."

"But the binding spell…" Maya half-protested.

Ruenis nodded. "Ruecian was very clever," he agreed. "I wish I'd had the chance to meet him…In any case, we can't be sure, and the risk is too great."

"So what's more dangerous?" Rue asked. "Going, and bringing our Dewstones, or staying here and waiting to see if Mint will release Valen?"

"When you put it that way, going is more dangerous," Ruenis said; "however, in the event that Valen _does_ return when Mint reaches the [relic], I'd much rather we be there to stop him than wait for the world to end."

"Is there some way you could put a binding spell on your own Dewstones?" Claire asked.

Rue and Ruenis stared at her.

"That…just might work," Ruenis said at last, his eyes wide.

Claire gave a small smile. "I know they have their limits - I spent three years in one," she reminded them.

Rue had never thought of it that way, but it was true, he supposed.

"But if one of them binds the other, the other won't be able to bind the first," Maya pointed out. "Right?"

"Actually, you could probably bind one of us," Ruenis told her. "Atenacius's [relic] probably still has a strong enough affinity for Aeon magic to cast it."

"But I've been in that binding spell," Rue argued. "It doesn't work like that."

"It's like any spell, in that it can be modified to suit the wishes of the caster," Ruenis told his brother. "Ruecian's own ingeniousness proved that already."

"I've never cast any sort of spell," Rue pointed out.

"Then I'll bind you, and Maya can bind me," Ruenis said. "I think I can figure out how to adjust it to suit our purposes."

"There's one other problem," Maya piped up: "Avalon is weeks away on foot. If you bind your Dewstones, you'll be binding your powers, so you'll have to walk."

This was a problem with no readily apparent solution. The four sat in silence for a minute, trying to puzzle it out.

"Could you not teleport them there?" Claire asked Maya at last.

"I don't know!" Maya said, her normal gracious demeanor finally cracking, giving way to frustration borne of fear. "I don't know what to do about any of this! My dear sister always slacked off on our official training and mostly taught herself, and only when she could be bothered at that, but it seems _I_ was the one worse off for it. I don't know…I don't know anything…" The frustration faded, leaving Maya vulnerable, revealed at last for what she was: a frightened child.

"It'll be okay," Claire told the young queen soothingly. "You did the right thing by coming to Rue and Ruenis for help."

"You found us in Avalon when we first arrived," Rue remembered out loud. "Can you do that again, but bring us with you?"

"I…I don't know," Maya said, all but on the verge of tears. "I didn't go straight there, I was searching the world for a week for the magical signature of Mint's Dual Halos…"

"You don't have to take us straight there from here," Ruenis told her. "A series of teleportation spells will still be far faster than walking. Even if you can only get us partway there, it would be an enormous help."

Maya took a breath. When the High Council had deemed her worthy of wielding the Book of Cosmos, she had let it go to her head; after the Book was completely stripped of all its power, she had realized that she had neglected her own training no less than Mint had, relying instead on the great Aeon's magic. Now, at a time when she was completely out of her depth and virtually helpless, she began doubting her ability to wield even the magic she _had_ learned.

And that just wouldn't do. She was the crown princess of the Kingdom of Sorcery, one-half monarch, and it was up to her to save the world from her sister.

"I will do what I can," she told the family she'd turned to for help, straightening up.

"Good," Ruenis said, and he stood up. "We need to get started now - we've lost too much time already. For that matter, we may already be out of time."

"Agreed," Maya said, standing too.

Rue stood up as well and turned to his brother. "So…how will we do this?" he asked.

Ruenis thought hard for a few seconds, then said, "Relax."

Rue took a breath.

Ruenis raised his hands over his head, as though gathering up the energy of the universe in his cupped palms.

"Gizmo~Gia~Giaz," he intoned.

Rue felt the tingling of the doll binding spell gathering around him, and he forced himself to remain still.

Ruenis stretched out his hands towards Rue, a look of intense concentration on his face. "To you born of dew, I command," he declared. "Relinquish your destiny and seal your powers!"

Rue blinked. 'Relinquish'? That wasn't how the spell went…

But a moment later, he understood, as the binding magic slid over and through his skin and coalesced instead around the blue stone in his forehead. He felt a white-hot flash of heat around his Dewstone, and then…there was nothing but a low, odd humming.

He reached up and touched his Dewstone, and found that he couldn't - his hand was stopped in midair, maybe a centimeter away from the surface of the stone. He tried transforming into a Saber Tiger, but he couldn't.

"It worked," he said. "I can't use it."

"Let's hope nothing else can, either," Ruenis said solemnly.

Rue nodded, and Ruenis turned to Maya. As he briefly explained what she needed to do, Rue glanced at Claire. "Will you be okay here?" he asked.

She smiled. "I'll be fine," she told him. "You just worry about yourself."

Rue nodded.

"Alright," Maya said, somewhat nervously. Ruenis took a step back, and she held out the destroyed Book of Cosmos in his direction, just as she would have if using the [relic] itself. It had no power of its own now, but it could channel magic still, and casting spells was much easier through a medium.

Maya took a breath. "Gizmo~Gia~Giaz," she intoned, trying to sound as commanding as possible as she summoned her magic.

The book began to glow, and Ruenis felt the beginnings of the spell in the air around him. This was a good sign - he hadn't been sure if someone other than Valen or one of his Dolls could even cast the spell. This meant either that they could, or that some trace of Atenacius still lingered in the Book, eager to defy Valen.

Maya tried to concentrate every ounce of her will. "To you born of dew, I command…Relinquish your destiny and seal your powers!"

The Book's glow brightened, and Ruenis experienced _almost_ the same sensation Rue had. It was close enough, in any case; when the magic was done, he couldn't reach his Dewstone anymore, in any way.

"Good," he said. "Now, we need to leave."

"It will help if we're outside," Maya said, and she went to the door without prompting. Rue directly followed her, but Ruenis lingered a moment with Claire.

"I knew you'd do the right thing when the time came," she told him.

"Claire…" Ruenis met Claire's eyes. "I don't know if I'll return," he told her, "but if I do, I…would like…to proceed, if that's alright with you."

Claire smiled and nodded, but said nothing.

The moment was over, and Ruenis had to leave. He gave her one last nod in farewell, then walked out the door behind Rue.


	10. Chapter 10

Morning came, though it was impossible to tell as deep inside the ruins of Ephlesia City as Mint, Belle, Duke, and Klaus were. Their bodies woke up anyway; though the night had been far from comfortable, they were all at least a bit clearer of mind. This was especially important for Klaus, as the bits and pieces that had been coming together the previous night finally formed a cohesive whole in his mind.

"Any ideas yet, Doc?" Duke asked him, sitting up.

"Yes!" Klaus exclaimed, standing up with an enthusiasm that surprised his companions.

"Really?" Mint exclaimed. "Way to go, Klaus!"

"So no more monsters?" Belle asked, looking impressed.

Klaus shook his head. "I can't promise I can keep us from running into any more obstacles," he told them; "I _can_, however, more or less promise that we won't run into anything impassible, as long as you follow my lead."

"Follow _your_ lead?" Belle repeated. "You don't belong on the front lines, old man."

"You're one to talk," Mint taunted.

"Shut up!" Belle snapped, shooting a fireball at Mint.

"Stop it!" Klaus shouted.

Mint, Belle, and Duke fell still, surprised.

"We can't afford to be fighting each other in here," Klaus scolded. "We have to work together. Yes, Belle, I should be on the front lines - this is _my_ theory, _I_ need to test it, and if I'm right, I should lead the way from now on."

Without waiting for anyone to so much as speak, Klaus took a few steps forward, past his companions. He paused, looking around carefully, then slowly placed one foot on a spot that didn't look any different from the rest of the floor.

Nothing happened.

He took another step. Then another, then another…He wasn't walking normally, he was clearly following a very distinct pattern, and he had to jump far to the side at times, but no monsters appeared, and nothing else got in his way.

After about twenty such steps, he looked back over his shoulder at the others, making sure to keep his feet very still. "Follow my steps exactly," he told them.

"How are you doing that?" Belle asked.

Klaus shook his head. "It has to do with the way the trail spirals," he said; "it's actually not smooth, there's a fractal pattern to it."

"What's a fractal?" Mint asked, completely clueless and not trying to hide it.

"Never mind," Klaus said; "it would take a long time to explain, and we have a long way to go. Just make sure to step exactly where I did and nowhere else."

This wasn't actually too difficult, as Klaus had left very distinct footprints in the dust that had accumulated on the floor over the centuries. Duke had it easiest with his act, but Mint and Belle were also nimble enough, and so they began to dance through the halls, around and around, drawing ever closer to the end of everything they thought they knew.

~o~

There was no one in the world who appreciated the race against time that began that day, no one understood just how close it would come between who would reach the central chamber of the Ephlesia City ruins first. Maya, Rue, and Ruenis popped from spot to spot across the continent, each spell taking minutes to finish - and more and more minutes as time went on, as Maya's strength dwindled; meanwhile, Mint, Klaus, Belle, and Duke carefully made their way through the halls as quickly as they could - at times, one of them made a misstep, and they had to break the pattern to overcome an obstacle before continuing on. Maya knew the world depended on her getting Rue and Ruenis to Avalon, though, and she forced herself to keep using her magic continuously as she tired; likewise, the team of four in the ruins were steadfast in making their way through the maze, all determined to fulfill their dreams, dreams they thought would be theirs if they made it through, completely ignorant of what truly awaited them.

It was early evening when at last Maya managed to reach Avalon.

"Thank you," Ruenis told Maya as soon as they were there. "Don't bother trying to bring us closer; Valen's magic won't let you." He looked in her eyes. "You did well," he told her; "we may not be too late."

"Thank you," Maya panted, barely able to stand from the exertion she'd put into bringing them this far.

Ruenis nodded, then gestured to Rue. "Come, brother," he said, "it's up to us now."

"Thank you, Maya," Rue told the young queen. "We won't let Mint-"

"Don't think you're going without me!" Maya exclaimed.

Rue and Ruenis stopped short. "What?" Rue asked.

"Mint is _my_ sister," Maya said firmly, forcing a second wind on herself, "and _I_ am the queen of East Heaven Kingdom, whose duty it is to oversee all affairs related to magic, Aeons, and [relics]. I'm coming with you."

"My Lady, please, you can barely stand," Ruenis protested.

Maya gave a laugh at Ruenis's formality. "I have to come," she told him. "It's my duty."

It took every ounce of self-control Rue had not to flinch at the sound of that word. Still, it was clear that Maya would not be dissuaded in the matter. She determinedly walked to them, a tenacity almost comparable to that of her sister taking hold in her. This was something she had to do, and that was that.

"Alright," Ruenis said at last, "but we must hurry!"

And the three of them headed into Avalon.

Because their Dewstones were bound, Valen's spell to keep people away from Ephlesia had the same effect on Rue and Ruenis as it would have on the average human; this meant that Ruenis was more affected than he should have been, while Rue was actually affected a tiny bit less than before. Between that and the fact that it was Rue who knew his way around the town at all, Ruenis actually had to work at keeping up with his brother - the brother who was finally acting as the older brother he technically was - and they couldn't move too much faster than Maya could go.

Before they reached the inn, however, they ran into Mira, Elena, and Prima Doll.

"Rue!" Elena exclaimed, running forward at the sight of him.

"Elena!" He ran to her. "Where are Mint and the Doctor?"

"Rue," Elena said again, "you're okay! I was so worried…"

Rue blinked. "I'm fine," he said. "I'm sorry I was gone for so long…some things came up…"

"Rue." It was Mira who addressed Rue now, joining him and her daughter.

"Mira," Rue greeted. "Where's the Doctor?"

She sighed. "Klaus and Mint left for the ruins yesterday morning," she told Rue gravely; "they haven't returned."

"That may not mean the worst," Ruenis piped up. "The maze is large, and it does take a couple of days to fully traverse, especially for those who don't know the steps."

"Oh, uh, hello," Mira said, only just noticing Ruenis. "Who are you?"

"This is Ruenis," Rue introduced his younger brother. "He's my brother, another Doll. And Ruenis, this is Mira, Elena, and the Prima Doll."

Ruenis nodded a greeting, then turned to Rue. "We need to hurry," he said. "If they've already been inside for more than a day, they may be close."

"Rue." Elena reached out and took Rue's hand in both of hers, tears in her eyes. "Bring my dad back, okay?" she pleaded.

Rue met her wide, dark eyes. She was truly, deeply afraid for her father, but she also clearly trusted Rue completely. In that moment, Rue knew that he couldn't let her down, no matter what he might have to do.

He returned her grasp. "I will," he told her. "I promise."

"Can we come with you?" Prima Doll asked.

"No," Ruenis said firmly, "especially not you."

"But…" Prima looked hurt.

"It's because you were made to unlock the seal on the Dewprism," Rue explained quickly; "your magic might have an effect in the ruins, and we can't risk that."

"But I gave my special magic to Mint," Prima said.

Rue and Ruenis blinked, then looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. Then, without sparing even a second for another word to anyone, they both took off for the ruins as fast as their legs could carry them, Maya forcing herself to follow as best she could.

It would be _very_ close.

~o~

Ruenis had explained the fractal pattern of the path to Rue and Maya on the way over, but they still had to follow his lead step-by-step. The going was slower here, and Maya was able to catch up and even catch her breath. After several minutes, though, they reached the area where Mint, Belle, and Duke had started fighting off guardians. The first four explorers actually _had_ been experiencing roadblocks from the start; before the monsters, the path had lengthened every time they'd misstepped. This, again, had been an incredible stroke of luck for them, almost as though some unseen force had been guiding their steps even in their haphazard formation.

"The pattern's broken here," Ruenis told the others, breaking out of the dance to run directly along the path; "as long as there are monsters on the ground, we can just run."

"But if they stop, will we be able to pick up the pattern again?" Rue asked, not stopping either.

Ruenis nodded. "Yes," he said, conserving his breath for the run. Maya didn't bother trying to spare any for words.

When they reached the end of the stretch of monster corpses an hour later, Ruenis stopped.

"What's wrong?" Rue asked.

Ruenis was staring at the empty path before them, his eyes wide.

"They figured out the pattern," he said, unable to believe his eyes.

"What?" Rue exclaimed.

"Look!" Ruenis pointed at the footprints in the dust. "Every footprint in front of us is in precisely the right place. Somehow, that Doctor you spoke of must have solved the puzzle." He shook his head. "_Brilliant_," he muttered. "Humans are incredible…"

"What does this mean for _us_?" Maya asked worriedly.

"It means we have less time than we thought," Ruenis replied grimly, and he began jumping along the fractal pattern of the trail as quickly as he could, slowing himself just enough to not allow for missteps.

Rue and Maya followed.

~o~

"Wow!"

First Klaus, then Duke, then Mint, and finally Belle took the last steps, and came to stand before a grand double-doorway. It was colored a rich, midnight blue, with elaborate golden embellishments swirling across both doors without interruption.

"Woo-hoo!" Mint cheered, giving a victory twirl. "We made it!"

"And it's about time," Belle added.

Klaus walked up to the doors, then hesitated a moment. These doors hadn't been opened in centuries, and never by human hands. Many had tried to get here over the years, but he had been the first to succeed. It was a heavy moment that he had to stop in acknowledgement of.

But Mint had no such inhibitions. "Come on!" she exclaimed, running right past Klaus, turning an ancient knob, and throwing her weight against the door.

It swung open easily, as if brand-new. Klaus wasn't sure whether or not he should be uneasy about the fact that it wasn't locked - there had been a lot of obstacles thus far, yes, but if anything, that just made it seem _more_ likely that whoever had built this place would have put a lock on the door.

But there was no help for it now, not with Mint charging inside at full speed, Belle and Duke right behind her. Klaus resisted the urge to shake his head, and he stepped inside with them.

What he saw took his breath away.

They were in a relatively small room, what looked like some sort of cross between a lab and a library. There were tables scattered with magical tools Klaus couldn't make heads or tails of, as well as several shelves crammed full of books.

"That's it?" Mint asked, disappointed. "There's nothing here!"

"Nothing but books," Belle agreed grumpily.

But Klaus shook his head. "These books date back to the days of the Aeons," he said breathlessly, stepping further into the room and approaching one of the shelves. "They may very well have been written _by_ Aeons. Some of the greatest - Ruehi, Vierna, maybe even Valen!"

"Are they worth much?" Belle asked, her interest sparked, if only barely.

"They're _priceless_!" Klaus exclaimed, his eyes perfect circles of wonder. "Tomes upon tomes of never-before-seen, heavily-guarded, primary-source documents…The implications are mind-boggling! At most, these could completely change our understanding of all of Aeon history!"

"If you say so," Belle said with a shrug.

"I thought we were looking for a [_relic_]," Mint grouched.

"There may be one here," Klaus said, already reaching for a book. "I'll help you look…just as soon as…I…" And he was gone, already lost in an ancient tome written by Aeons long ago.

Belle walked straight for what she saw as the most useful item in the room: A chair. She sat down with relief, already plotting how to steal some of these books from under Klaus's nose and sell them for a fortune to scholars and historians. Duke was looking at the books curiously, but though he was a fantasy novel fanatic, ancient scientific texts in a language too old for him to have even heard of didn't have much for him - even if that 'science' was technically magic.

Frustrated, Mint started fiddling around with the ancient tools scattered on tables here and there. She couldn't begin to guess at the function of most of them, but if Aeons had used them, she wasn't going to give up hope that there might be some magical artifact to be found here. When she'd looked at all the various objects and found nothing, and all of her companions still hadn't so much as spoken, she started looking around the room itself, hoping to find a hidden compartment or something somewhere.

After a while of searching everywhere, floor-to-ceiling, she finally found some strange engravings on the far wall. They were shallow and easy to miss, but Mint thought she recognized the same pattern from the platform at the center of the lake ruins near Carona.

And she had the magic that went with it.

Without even taking a moment to celebrate her discovery, she whipped out her Dual Halos and charged them up, reaching for the golden magic from Prima Doll's amulet, shaping it with the power she'd been able to get from the Book of Cosmos. The others noticed what she was doing, but before any of them could do much more than turn to look at her, she conjured a prismatic cloak of golden light. The magic served as both offensive and defensive, but if she could push it into the wall…

The golden magic floated forward, and to Mint's delight, it immediately merged with the pattern on the wall, filling out the engravings with a bright golden light.

"Mint…?" Klaus asked, actually setting his book aside. "What have you…?"

The lines of gold flowed outward from the pattern, cracks streaking across the wall, until the whole thing looked ready to crumble. Then, crumble it did, revealing a whole second room.

As the remains of the wall melted away, light streamed into the study, and not just white light or light of one color - streams of every color imaginable poured out of the secret space, bathing everything in dazzling rainbows.

"Whoa."

If Mint had been underwhelmed by the first room, she was completely blown away by this new place she'd found. Colors of all sorts shifted, mixed, and swirled on the walls, floor, and ceiling. This new room was much bigger than the study - the one wall of the study was only the size of a doorway compared to the wall of this second chamber.

Mint stepped inside, half-wondering if the floor was even solid enough to support her weight. Fortunately, it was. She barely heard the others following her. This was even more amazing than the central chamber of Valen's Fortress where the Dewprism had been housed, and she had no doubt that a [relic] was in here somewhere.

There were no furnishings in the dazzling chamber, making it that much more difficult to see where the floor ended and the walls began. After a few steps inside, however, something near the opposite wall caught Mint's eye. The room was all made up of colored light, but a much brighter light, grass-green in color, shone like a star even in here from across the room. At the sight of it, she sprinted straight for it, knowing her long search was finally over.

On the opposite side of the room stood an altar. The base was a simple rectangular block, each side shining with a different color, steps cut into the side facing the entrance. On top of this block, two crystal protrusions, mint-green in color, arched from the edges towards the center, the tips curling in on themselves. Perched between these two inward curls, like the keystone of an archway, was a ring. A simple green band, unadorned with even an engraving, but shining brilliantly like a star. It wasn't what Mint had been expecting, but it was clearly an object of powerful magic.

A [relic].

"Yes!" she cried joyfully, dancing with triumph. "Yes, yes, _yes_!"

She ran up the steps, reaching for the [relic]. Just before she managed to close her hand around it, though, two voices rang out, loud and urgent:

"Mint, stop!"

"No!"

Rue and Ruenis had made it just in time, Maya right behind them.


	11. Chapter 11

Mint turned around, and froze.

Rue, Ruenis, and Maya ran past Klaus, Belle, and Duke without acknowledging the other party, their attention entirely on Mint.

"Don't touch that!" Rue exclaimed urgently.

"What?!" Mint was so shocked to even see her sister and the two dolls to make much sense of what they were even saying, much less come up with a more intelligent response.

As Mint still tried to collect herself, Maya spoke. "My dear sister," she said pleadingly, "you don't know what's going on here. You need to step away from that."

And just like that, Mint's focus returned.

"Don't tell me what to do!" she shouted at Maya. "I've been searching for this for years, I've fought monsters and solved puzzles and faced down an Aeon - _this is mine_! I earned this, and now I'm going to take over the world! I don't care what you say!"

"Oh, for once in your life, would you just _listen_?" Maya exclaimed. "Not everything is about you! I don't want to see you take over the world, but if you touch that [relic], what will happen will be much worse than that."

A strange feeling, entirely foreign to Mint, stirred inside of her, actually urging her to listen to Maya for a change. But she wasn't going to change her mind now, not when she'd come so far.

"Please," Maya begged. "You don't understand what's going on here. There's something you…don't know…" She looked at Rue and Ruenis uncertainly, wondering if she should tell Mint the truth.

"Oh yeah?" Mint challenged. "I'm listening. You have five seconds."

Maya hesitated, wordlessly begging the two dolls for advice, but they were as uncertain as she was. After all this time, all the effort that had been put into keeping this secret, could they really reveal it now? And if they didn't, would Mint's quest to conquer the world never end?

"That's what I thought," Mint sneered, and she turned back to the [relic].

"Wait!" Maya cried. "_NO_!"

But she could do nothing as Mint's hand closed over the glowing ring, and she wrenched it from between the two arches.

The effect was instantaneous. Something like a tremendous lightning bolt, only much stronger, crashed straight through the roof and engulfed the entire altar, throwing Mint backward a good few feet. The blinding white light burned through all the colors in the room. It also burned through the binding spells on Rue and Ruenis's Dewstones, completely wiping them away.

The arches began to crack, then splinter; the base of the altar followed suit. There was a deafening crash as a rift between worlds was violently torn open, and the light became blinding.

When at last the light faded and the attendants could see once more, there, floating above the spot where the altar had been, was a spirit that four of them knew only too well, and whose identity the others could easily guess at.

"I'll be damned…" Belle breathed in awe.

Richly dressed and regal as a king, power emanating from his very essence…Valen had returned.

Mint's eyes widened. After a moment, she sent a very scathing glare in her sister's direction.

"You could have warned me!" she shouted.

Maya didn't respond. Everyone but Mint was staring at Valen; he stared back at them all with what almost looked like surprise.

"Here?" he asked at last. "This is where I return?"

Klaus's eyes widened as he recognized the voice from the end of his nightmare. _Valen brought me here?_

Mint stood up. "You're not the only one who's surprised!" she snarled at him. "What are you even doing here? This isn't one of your seals!"

"You!" Valen turned his eyes on the bratty princess. He shook his head in what looked like complete and total exasperation. "How is it that twice now, I've returned, only to be greeted by _you_?"

Mint shrugged. "You tell me," she said. She thought for a second, then added, "Oh, and I see you've got your old body back. Or no, wait, you don't have a body, do you?"

"Silence, worm!" Valen thundered, tossing a bolt of magic at Mint. Caught off guard, Mint was thrown against the far wall.

Valen turned to his dolls. "Rue," he said, his eyes glinting with recognition. "The broken doll. Have you finally decided to respect your creator?"

"No," Rue said firmly, his hand going to his weapon. "I came here to stop you."

"What about you, Ruenis?" Valen asked, turning to the young doll whose eyes were perfect circles of awe. "Are you broken as well?"

"Father…" Ruenis breathed.

"It seems not," Valen said, a bit of satisfaction finally crossing his face.

Ruenis shook his head, regaining his senses. "Father, please don't do this," he begged.

Valen blinked.

"I know you intend to shatter the world and rebuild it from scratch," Ruenis said, speaking fast, "and I know why - you showed me why, in the memories you gave me. But you don't understand - the world isn't as wretched as you think. Ruehi doesn't represent all people, or even all women for that matter!"

"And what makes you say that?" Valen asked, incredulous but not yet angry.

"Because I've met one," Ruenis told his creator. "A human woman, more angelic and virtuous than you even imagined Ruehi to be." He nodded to Rue. "My brother spent three years searching for the power to bring her back, after Ruecian accidentally killed her. You've seen her - the Dewprism rebuilt her mortal body. Father, people like her _do_ exist, people who make this world one worth living in as it is, without rebuilding it all!"

"I see…" Valen said slowly.

Hope sparked in Ruenis's eyes. The uninvolved attendees and Mint had no clue what the two ancient beings were talking about, but Rue and Maya knew.

Valen closed his eyes, apparently deep in thought. "You have saved me," he said at last, "and now, in return…I will save you, my son."

Ruenis's eyes widened. "Father, no-!"

"She'll betray you!" Valen shouted, glaring at his youngest son now. "They always do! You'll see, one day, this woman you so admire will turn out just like all the others! I will spare you that experience, and I expect gratitude-!"

Mint had had enough. "Hey!" she shouted at Valen. "I don't know what's going on, but how about you crawl back into your dimension and leave us alone before I make you?! Or go to hell - that works, too," she added mockingly.

"How _dare_ you?" Valen bellowed furiously, turning on her. "You miserable-!"

He froze. His eyes had finally caught sight of the green ring Mint was tossing up and down casually in one hand.

"That ring…" he breathed.

Mint looked at the ring she was holding. "This?" she said. "Yeah, you came back when I picked it up. Real convenient, by the way, how _do_ you do it?"

Though he wasn't even corporeal, Valen began to shake with rage. "Relinquish that this instant!" he commanded, a dangerous wrath crackling through his words. "You human wretch! How _dare_ you lay a hand on Ruehi's precious…?!" His face contorted with fury, and words failed him. Lightning gathered around his ghostly hands, and he raised them towards her, clearly intending to obliterate her on the spot.

"Mint!" Rue exclaimed, and he ran in front of her, just in time to block the blast of magic Valen unleashed towards her.

"_Get out of my way_!" Valen roared furiously, and the lightning doubled in strength.

Rue struggled to hold on. His weapon had been created for him by Valen, so it was unbreakable, but Rue could only hold it up to defend himself and Mint for so long. In desperation, he glanced at Ruenis, and a sudden understanding sparked between them. They nodded at each other.

Rue glanced back at Mint. "Mint," he called over the roar of Valen's wrath, "if given the choice, would you save the world as it is, or destroy it and then rebuild it?"

Mint blinked in surprised. "What a dumb question!" she exclaimed. "This is my world to conquer, as it is now! I don't want to make it myself from scratch - what fun would that be?"

It was as good an answer as Rue could have hoped for. Still holding up his shield, with the last remnants of his strength, he cried out, "Brother!"

Ruenis raised his hands over his head and summoned the magic of his Dewstone.

"Gizmo~Gia~Giaz!" he intoned, perfectly audible over the sound of the tidal wave of devastating magic.

As magical energy gathered around Ruenis, Valen stopped what he was doing and turned to him, as did everyone else. They stared at him, as he lowered his hands and stretched them out…towards Mint.

Mint's eyes widened with confusion as the force of the spell gathered around her.

"To you born of dew, I implore," Ruenis declared: "Reclaim your destiny, and be free forevermore!"

"What are you-? _Aaaaah_!"

Mint's words were cut short as a scream was wrenched from her own throat. A pulsing golden light bloomed in her chest. From it, cracks began to spread across her skin, much the same as they had covered the wall she had broken the seal on; the light was faintly visible through her clothes, but nearly blinding when it came across her hands and face.

She rose into the air, powerful magic swirling around her, both the ring and her Dual Halos clattering to the floor. Her eyes and mouth became holes of brilliant white light.

But something wasn't right. The magic stopped progressing, as though it had reached an impasse with a conflicting force, though it still fought.

_It's not enough._ The thought crossed Rue's mind, and in a split second, he knew what to do. He focused on the magic of his Dewstone, calling upon it as he never had before, his eyebrows meeting in total concentration. Then, he raised his free hand towards Mint, and completed what Ruenis began using the other incantation he had been born to recite - to be used, like everything else he had been born with, in a way entirely different from how it had been intended.

"Arise from the Aeon's sleep!" he cried. "Come forth, the time is now; _reign unto eternity_!"

The magical resistance shattered like a thin pane of glass, and the golden light exploded through Mint, a shriek piercing the air that at first seemed to come from her, but quickly rose to a pitch that indicated something else entirely, like metal protesting as it was wrenched apart. Her clothes were vaporized, even her hairpiece, leaving her bare, a golden star topped with a raging crimson flame. The sight was too awesome to be indecent, however. The light grew, and grew, blinding everyone, eradicating everything. Everyone raised their hand to shield their eyes - even Valen, out of instinct - but for naught…It was too bright…

The scream reached a peak and ripped through the air like thunder, magic crashed around everyone, and then…the noise and light faded. After a few seconds, everyone opened their eyes, just in time to see Mint descend slowly and touch down on the floor.

But it was not the Mint they knew.

Mint had been a late bloomer, always looking a bit more like the child she behaved like than the young adult she technically was. Not anymore. The young woman on one knee before them all was grown and elegant. 'Beautiful' was a pitiful word to describe her. Her crimson hair, now unbound, cascaded down around her in waves to the small of her back, looking like fire woven into threads and draped around her head. Her skin was an exotic golden color, smooth and radiant. A regal purple gown loosely hugged her body down to her waist, where her normal old belt was clasped; then it released and spread out around her - it was a little bit like her dress from East Heaven, only it covered her whole body and didn't have an open front. The cuffs around her wrist were a golden color just a bit more yellow and brilliant than her skin. Through a slit in her dress that came up to just below her knee, everyone could see elegant leather sandals, high-heeled and made up of many, many straps of the softest leather, woven around her feet and ankles.

And in the center of her forehead, looking for all the world like a new sort of Dewstone, was a glowing pink diamond. Though a delicate golden chain was woven through her hair and crossed the top of it, the diamond was clearly part of Mint's body, just as Rue and Ruenis's Dewstones were part of them.

Slowly, she raised her head, opened her ruby-red eyes, and stood. She looked down at her hands, at her whole self, in utter confusion. Not only was she baffled by her new appearance, but it felt as though she had been trapped in a haze her whole life, and now it had lifted - not only from her sight, but also from her mind and heart. Free at last of a spell that had drawn on her life force, her patience and tolerance for others could manifest fully, unhindered by an unconquerable weariness.

Of all the people in the room, the one most awestruck was Valen. Had he still been corporeal, his knees would have buckled, unable to support him. He stared at the transformed Mint with disbelief…and wonder.

Then, he breathed in awe two words that simultaneously answered everyone's questions and sparked a hundred more:

"My daughter."

* * *

**Credit goes to penname "ReLiC AnGeL" for Mint's pink life stone.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Excerpts from the diary of the former king of East Heaven Kingdom, father of Queen Maya**

* * *

Years have passed as my wife and I rule our kingdom justly and righteously, yet we still want for a child. Magic to force new life into existence is forbidden, even for us - only nature can grant us an heir. Yet it refuses. I fear for the future…

~X~

Today, our magicians discovered a magically-bound chamber in the ruins of an old atelier that dates back to the days of the Aeons. I personally went to examine the findings. What we found defies belief.

A large, translucent pink crystal, surrounded by two interlinked golden hoops, stood on a pedestal. Encased inside the crystal was an embryo, though it looks like it may be developed enough to qualify as an infant. On the floor in front of the pedestal was an envelope that glowed with a silver light. Inside was a letter, written in an ancient language used by the Aeons and long since dead. When translated, it read:

_I do not know what history will remember about us. We Aeons were not born as animals are - instead, we came from the aether, created to guide the last steps of creation with powers that made us demigods. Likewise, we were born lacking any means of procreating, fated from conception to weaken and die out, and one day vanish from existence completely. I was born with powers far greater than even others of my kind, and I never accepted this fate. Why should we be used and tossed aside thus, when all other beings of mortal flesh could live on through generations? Why should we be trapped in mortal bodies but unable to enjoy the benefits of flesh that all other creatures enjoy? We do eat and sleep, and we conduct power from the universe - though we were given no objective - but that is all._

_Man had already begun to populate the Earth when we came. We kept our distance, but some of us sought to understand them, these beings that were some strange cross between us and common beasts. None worked so hard in this endeavor as Ruehi._

_Ruehi…She with flowing crimson hair, mint-green eyes, and golden skin…beautiful, elegant, wise, and kind…she is a goddess trapped in a prison of mortal flesh, and no mistake. Flowers bloom wherever she walks, and even the darkest of nights seem bright in her radiant presence. She and her twin sister, Vierna, came into being with a special affinity for all living things, but while her sister sought to understand the principles of life itself, Ruehi tried to understand the hearts and souls of mankind, of the people who would populate the Earth long after we were gone. Though she never admitted it, I know she sometimes wondered if our souls could be compared to those of humans, if we were subject to the same rules of the heart._

_I was honored to work with her and her sister in Ephlesia City. At first, I was wary of telling them my ultimate intentions, but what I wanted was to find a way to break away from our wretched fate as tools, and take control of our destiny, by finding a way to break the law nature laid on us that we could not have offspring. But when Vierna began to formulate theories about the benefits of the mating of two separate individuals to create new life, I knew what I would do. I knew I was too great to die out, and Ruehi was at least as deserving of the honor of living on in this world as I. I admired her, thinking her more beautiful and extraordinary than any feat of magic I could ever accomplish - waving a hand and moving the stars meant nothing to me, not compared to the very thought of sharing my life with her._

_I knew I would create a child from her essence and mine. Ruehi and I, combined together into one being…Surely, such perfection could never be rivaled by any other phenomenon the world might ever see. With the help of her research and Vierna's, I found a way. I could rise above all other Aeons, and I could bring her with me, to stand by my side for all of eternity. In the face of her tender-hearted nature and all the effort she had put into understanding the human soul, I thought she would understand me as well…perhaps even that she would begin to think of me as I did her._

_I was wrong._

_When I told her, showed her, what I had achieved, what we could do, she renounced me in horror. She called me a monster, told me I was breaking laws that should never be challenged. But I could see it in her eyes: She feared what I could do. Even she could not do what I could, and she feared and envied my power, burying it in senseless talk of morals and righteousness and laws of nature. She went to the most powerful Aeon beneath me, Atenacius, and pleaded with him to have me exiled from my people, or even killed. When he refused, she took matters into her own hands. Once, she nearly succeeded in slipping pumpkin into my food - pumpkin, the strange fruit utterly toxic to our kind! I had only wanted to make her the goddess she deserved to be, and in return, she tried to exile and poison me!_

_But I had come too far to abandon what I had worked so hard to achieve. Unbeknownst to her, I did manage to take from her what I needed to create a new life from her essence and mine. I made the child perfect, giving it both everything Ruehi and I had and everything I wished we had. I knew I couldn't risk the child being found by any of my kin, though; so, when I created it, I sealed it halfway between this world and another, suspended in space and time until such a time as it was safe for it to walk the Earth._

_You who are reading this, I pray you are human, and that that time has come, when all of our kind - save perhaps myself - are gone from this world. This child is the daughter of the two greatest Aeons the universe has ever known. Her name is Mintazene. Please care for her, give her the life - the world - that she deserves; and in return, she will do the same for you._

_-Valen, Greatest of the Aeons_

Even now, having completely transcribed the entirety of the translation, I cannot believe what we have found. An Aeon child! A child of _Valen_, no less! I know the High Council will fight me in this matter, but perhaps this child is the answer to my prayers. We could raise her to take the throne when my wife and I must pass it on. Who better to rule the Kingdom of Sorcery than a new Aeon? If my wife cannot have children, surely I can sway the Council with enough effort. I cannot let this opportunity pass us by.

~X~

After months of debate, the High Council has finally agreed to break the seal on the Aeon child Mintazene and give her life. She shall be raised as my daughter, princess of East Heaven Kingdom.

~X~

We released the child today. She seems a normal baby, but for a tiny pink fragment of the crystal we found her in still embedded in her forehead. Our best magicians examined it closely, and found that it is not part of the sealing spell, but rather a tiny crystallized form of the essence of life itself. It is, in a way, her heart, her mind, and her soul. She has the needs and capabilities of a normal infant, though, and a testing of her powers will have to wait a few years.

Also, the two golden hoops that surrounded the crystal remain as well. We think perhaps they may be a [relic] of sorts, made specifically for the child to use when she is old enough. We won't be able to know for a long time, though.

~X~

Young Mintazene, or "Mint" for short, is a vivacious child, eager to learn and grow. She is everything I ever could have wanted in a daughter. The High Council keeps a close watch on her, though; I think they're waiting - nay, _praying _- that something will go wrong. They still consider her an abomination, no matter how much I try to convince them to see her as a child - one with a potential for great power, yes, but still a person, no different from any of them, or from how they had been when they were children. Myself, I pray that all will prove fruitful.

~X~

Today, I received news that I wish I could see as joyous, but which only concerns me now: My wife, the queen, is pregnant. Some non-magician doctors suspect that our difficulty trying to conceive may have been tied to stress we both felt regarding the urgency of having a child. With Mint ours now, that stress is gone, and so we could conceive after all.

I am still determined that Mint be my heir, though the Council is lobbying to have her passed over in favor of my unborn child. I have had to fight them for every bit of the life I've been able to give Mint, and though she is not my flesh and blood, I still see her as my daughter. With her red hair and eyes, she looks similar enough to myself and the queen to make it easy to pretend that she is indeed ours by blood, save for the pink stone in her forehead. The stone grows with her, staying the same in terms of proportion to her size; even this has the Council in a tizzy.

~X~

Mint's powers are growing exponentially; soon, she will far outclass our best magicians. I feel this was only to be expected, given what she is, but the High Council is in a state of chaos over the matter. They demand that we find a way to slow her growth in power, make her more manageable. At last, I understand what they fear: They fear that which they will not be able to control. One Aeon can easily overpower all of the magicians in our kingdom working together; when she grows up, Mint will be something no form of High Council or authority will be able to so much as touch.

What worries me most is that my wife, the queen, is beginning to agree with them. They are threatening an ultimatum: Find a way to bind Mint's powers, leave the throne to my wife's unborn child, or they will revolt and destroy our kingdom and my family. Nothing I say can sway them. I fear for the future…

~X~

My human child was born today. It's a girl, Mint's baby sister. We named her Maya. I wish we could be a happy family of four, but the High Council is getting more vocal by the day. The kingdom's High Council itself was created to ensure that no monarch would have total and absolute power, in case the monarch became corrupted somehow; however, I fear that it is the Council that has become corrupt.

It has crossed my mind that perhaps this is the same situation Valen experienced with Ruehi over Mint's creation - this fear of what cannot be understood or controlled, being twisted through a lens of morals and righteousness to demonize that which so threatens.

I have tried explaining to them that there is no way to bind an Aeon child's power, not even if I wanted to. In response, they have offered the coveted title of Master Magician to anyone who can devise a spell to bind Mint. I will fight them to the end.

~X~

I fear I was the one in error. Mintazene's power has grown out of control. None of us know how she can harness it, and she's but a child, too young to even comprehend the magic she wields. She has become a danger, not only to others, but to herself. She told me today, after she accidentally set fire to her own doll just by picking it up, "Daddy, I'm scared."

This isn't about morals any longer.

I'm afraid I will have to concede that the High Council was right. Mint's powers must be bound somehow. I myself will give the title of Master Magician to whoever can solve this problem before something truly disastrous occurs.

~X~

A mysterious, foreign magician came to our kingdom a few decades ago, calling himself "Ruecian". He was tested, and found to wield remarkable power; he also claimed to know some secrets about several mysteries our kingdom has been trying to puzzle out for quite some time. His hair was white when he first came and has not changed, and he always wears a red, white, and black-striped mask. I have been wary of trusting him, but had nothing but an untestable gut feeling against him.

Today, he approached me, telling me that he'd once discovered a binding spell in an ancient tome he'd read during his travels before he came to us. He couldn't cite the source, but he told me he'd devised a way to alter it so that it could bind Mint's powers and make her human. Out of concern for Mint and all of our kingdom, despite my hesitation to trust him, I allowed him to try it.

The incantation was unlike anything I've ever so much as heard of before:

_Gizmo~Gia~Giaz  
__To you born of dew, I command:  
__Fall deep into the Aeon's sleep -  
__Relinquish your destiny and seal your powers!_

I've also never witnessed such power. It's amazing, the way it worked - even Mint's appearance was altered so as to humanize her, hiding her stone of life and pinkening the golden color of her skin. We never told her of her origins, and I myself cast a spell so that she would forget what Ruecian did to her. We have even officially shortened her name to "Mint", so that even her Aeon name shall be forgotten. She will never be any the wiser, and she will still be allowed to take the throne when the time comes.

Under the approval of all of the royal court, I named Ruecian as one of our elite Master Magicians. When asked what title he would like to bear, he chose the name "Doll Master", though he offered no explanation for his choice. Regardless, I am grateful to him for solving this conundrum, and freely admit to having been wrong about him. He is a great asset to our kingdom, and I am honored to have him join the ranks of our elite.

~X~

Since being bound, Mint's demeanor has changed greatly. Once she was curious and patient to learn; now, she's impulsive and inconsiderate. I hesitate to call my beloved daughter a brat, but that is what she's turning into.

I asked Doll Master about this change in her manner. He first offered me his deepest apologies, then explained that the binding spell drew from her own life force, essentially making her perpetually fatigued - and, in being fatigued, she is impatient and rude. I can appreciate this reasoning - when I was young, if I went without sleep for too long, I certainly became irate and quite difficult to deal with. Unfortunately, even Doll Master failed to offer a solution to this problem in Mint's case. If she will be perpetually tired her whole life, and if this fatigue makes her too uncivil to reign as a good queen, I fear she will have to lose both her powers and her right to the throne.

I can only pray…

~X~

My younger daughter, Maya, is the very picture of sophisticated grace, even as a very young woman. As the years have gone by, the difference between her and Mint has increased exponentially; now, they could not be more different. And, I am sad to say, Maya is far more deserving and capable of being queen than Mint is. I've tried to help Mint through her boorish tendencies, but she resists me with a stubbornness I would consider admirable under other circumstances.

~X~

Today, the High Council called a meeting, with myself included, and proposed that the title of crown princess be taken from Mint and given to Maya. All of the Council agreed readily, no doubt because they still have never accepted Mint as part of this kingdom; but, though it made my heart heavy, I had no choice but to agree with them in this matter as well. Mint cannot rule. They also elected that Maya be granted possession of the greatest [relic] in our kingdom, Atenacius's Book of Cosmos. This, too, I supported.

Everything I ever tried to give my elder daughter has failed. Mint, in whom I had once seen such hope and promise, is nothing but a regret I will be burdened with for the rest of my life. It was my own foolishness that led to this disaster, and the worst part is that she has had to pay the price without even being told why. In my heart, she will always be my daughter, and I will always love her…I only wish I could tell her why life has been so cruel to her. But I cannot - the danger is too great.

Forgive me, my daughter…

~X~

I knew Mint would react adversely to losing her right to the throne, but what came about was far more calamitous than I could ever have anticipated.

She ran away.

I don't know where she is now. I don't know why she left, what she hopes to gain or what she hopes to find. I hope she will return someday; as it is, I worry about her. I wish I could tell her all the secrets that have been kept, all the lies she's been told…at the very least, I wish I could do something to make up for what I've done to her. But I can only pray for her well-being, and that she will return one day.

* * *

**Credit goes to penname "ReLiC AnGeL" for Mintazene's pink life stone.**


	13. Chapter 13

Mint blinked and looked up at Valen.

"Excuse me?" she asked, confused. Her voice was a bit more mature, a bit less whiny, but not completely different from how it had always been.

"Mintazene," Valen breathed, still in total shock. "It's you…But how…?"

"Don't look at _me_," Mint said, equally bewildered. "I have no idea what's going on right now." She blinked again. "And what do you mean 'Mintazene'? My name's Mint!"

"'Mint' is short for 'Mintazene'," Maya said softly.

Everyone turned to her.

"Since when?" Mint asked, still baffled.

"Since always." Maya couldn't look at Mint, or anyone else. "My dear sister…we are…not related."

Mint shook her head. "I don't…"

"Father found you," Maya said. "Valen left you as an infant suspended in space and time; Father had you brought to life and took you in. But you were too powerful, and everyone feared you…so they put a binding spell on you to make you human. They kept it a secret from anyone who didn't already know, including me…and you."

Mint looked down at herself again.

"Humans put a binding spell on my daughter?" Valen asked, rage rising back past the shock.

"Actually, it was Ruecian who did it," Ruenis spoke up. "He altered the doll-binding spell to work on her."

"He was given a place among our kingdom's most elite magicians in return," Maya added, still looking at the floor.

It was hard to say who present was the most stunned or confused - the three human bystanders, Valen, or Mint. No one could say another word; what else was there to say?

At last, Mint bent down and picked up her Dual Halos. As soon as she touched them, a jolt of electricity sizzled through her - it was as if she'd never actually touched them with her bare hands before (which, in a way, she hadn't). She could feel all the magic she had gathered into the golden rings over the years literally at her fingertips, sensing and understanding it in ways she could never have imagined before.

Even bending down and standing up again felt strange. It was as though she'd always put extra strain into every move she made, and now the need for that effort was gone and everything felt too easy. Her mind, conversely, felt sluggish. Nothing made any sense. In barely two minutes, everything she thought she knew had been shattered. Not only did she not know who she was anymore, she wasn't sure _what_ she was, either!

"What am I?" she asked at last, addressing no one in particular.

"You're an Aeon's daughter," Maya said tonelessly.

"Meaning what?" Mint exclaimed.

Maya sighed. "I don't know," she admitted.

"I didn't know Aeons had kids," Belle commented.

"We didn't," Valen said, still collecting himself. "Mine is the only one." He flickered out of existence, then back in next to Mint - because he was a spirit, walking was pointless.

Mint turned and stared at him. He stared back, his expression unreadable.

"You look just like your mother," he said softly at last. "Except for your eyes…_My_ eyes…"

Mint shook her head. "My mother?" she repeated. "Didn't you make…me…out of thin air or something?" _Damn, that's weird to say out loud._

Valen shook his head but said nothing.

Maya walked over to her not-sister, still staring at the ground. "Here," she murmured, not looking up, and she held out the king's diary to Mint. "This was in the locked drawer in Father's desk, along with a note Valen left behind explaining what you were."

Mint took the book. She glanced around hesitantly, unsure if this was really the time to read it, but everyone, including Valen, still looked too shocked to do much for a while, and she decided she might as well find out what was going on.

Reading had never exactly been hard for Mint, but she'd never really had much patience for it, either. Now, though, she was willing to take time to make sense of whatever was happening, and once she opened the book, she found herself processing the written words much faster than she normally would have. As she learned why - that her attitude her whole life had essentially been due to perpetual grouchiness from fatigue - she began to wonder how much of the person she'd been for so long was really her. Apart from her mind being clearer and her body seeming a little more cooperative, she didn't feel _that_ much different, apart from being utterly confused…but…

She read the last of what she needed to know, then let the book simply drop to the swirling rainbow floor, closing her eyes. This would take a long time to come to terms with, perhaps forever. Everything she'd known was a lie - as cliché as it was, that was the truth. Although…she remembered that little doll that had burned up in her hand. It had been one of her favorites, with pink hair and a blue dress…She had all but forgotten about it, though…

She lifted a hand to her face and touched her forehead, wondering. There was the life stone - pink, if nothing had changed since she'd been bound (which it hadn't), but otherwise basically identical to the ones Rue and Ruenis bore. Except, nothing had been broken apart to make it - instead, it had been created just for her, and had grown with her body. Her 'heart, mind, and soul', all encased in a thing that she didn't understand…

Wait.

_Nothing was broken apart to make this,_ she thought, _but Valen broke apart a pane of the Dewprism to give life to his dolls. His _precious_ Dewprism, which he cherishes like a child, and which he would never go anywhere without or let anyone else use…_

She opened her eyes and glanced around the room of color and light quickly. Everything shone with different colors like a prism, and the ring she'd taken still glowed with grass-green light on the floor…but Valen's precious Dewprism was nowhere to be found, even though he floated right next to her.

"Maya," she murmured, willing no one else to hear her (and thus making it so without realizing it).

Maya finally looked up at her, her eyes wide.

"Get Klaus, Belle, and Duke out of here," Mint told her not-sister quietly. "Now."

"Wh-?" Maya began to ask.

"Because the Dewprism isn't here," Mint said, anticipating Maya's question. "Get them out while I distract him."

Maya blinked, then ran over to where the other humans stood by.

Mint turned to Valen. "Father," she said, commanding every bit of his attention with that one word.

Valen's eyes widened; he wasn't used to being called that, as only Ruenis ever had before, and that had been but minutes earlier.

Mint tilted her head. "Were you really going to completely destroy the world with me still in it?" she asked, not angrily.

Valen flinched and recoiled. "I…I didn't think…" he stammered, not at all the high-and-mighty all-powerful Aeon he normally tried to be. "I didn't…think you might still be waiting. I was sealed away for so long, and you…"

The humans were almost back into the study, but Mint needed to make sure Valen stayed focused on her. She shook her head. "You should have," she said. "I shouldn't exist."

Valen's eyes widened even more, suddenly blazing, not only with surprise, but also with anger. "You don't appreciate-?"

"I know you thought what you were doing made sense," Mint said, "but you shouldn't have, is all."

The great Aeon's ghostly fists clenched, rage twisting his expression once more. "Even you?" he whispered thunderously. "Ruehi betrayed me, my own dolls rejected me, and now even you insist on standing against me?!" He flickered out of existence again, then reappeared back over the rift through which he'd reentered the world.

_Here it comes,_ Mint thought, quickly reaching down and scooping up her mother's [relic], far from sure what she was planning but not about to let that stop her. The ring's glow brightened in her grip, perhaps recognizing the daughter of its maker, but Mint couldn't tap into its power like this - she had to wear it.

Rue and Ruenis, meanwhile, were running at Valen, apparently having also guessed what was going on…just barely too late.

"I've had enough!" Valen declared, casually tossing his dolls across the room with a flick of his not-hand. Rue and Ruenis hit the far wall and dropped to the floor heavily. Valen then raised his insubstantial arms, and out of the rift rose his pride and joy, the all-powerful Dewprism.

"You still can't use that without a body, though!" Rue exclaimed, pushing himself to his feet. "And you can't make it your body! Remember what happened last time? You lost control!"

"Silence!" Valen thundered.

Mint slid the glowing green ring on her left ring finger, and suddenly, it was as if a lens had fallen into place. With just a glance, she could see the madness in Valen's eyes, read what he intended to do. He didn't care about control anymore, about using the Dewprism to rebuild the world according to his vision; he wanted only to destroy.

And she knew the one way to stop him.

The daughter of Ruehi raised her hand, holding her mother's [relic] to the ceiling and the sky above. Ancient words, word she hadn't even known she knew, sprang to her lips:

"Lah-kou-tae!"

This intonation got Valen's attention. The Ring of Life grew bright, shining once more like a grass-green star, just on the verge of drowning out the other colors of light that filled the room. Energy swirled around Mint like wind as she called on the ancient, powerful magic. She couldn't see it, but the pink stone in her forehead glowed almost as brightly as her new [relic].

Her eyes met their twins in Valen's face. "I will not let you do this, Father," she told him.

"You will not stop me!" he howled, madness finally drowning out even his regal demeanor. "There will be no more!"

"Only for you," Mint replied. She was about to close her eyes, but just in time, she remembered Rue and Ruenis. Quickly, her eyes found Rue. _Run,_ she thought at him desperately.

Suddenly, it was as though time froze for all but the two of them, as Mint inadvertently called upon the power her father had used to create and distribute all of his dolls across the world in the moments before his body was destroyed and his spirit was sealed in another dimension, so long ago.

_Mint?_ Rue's question was perfectly audible, though nothing moved. _What are you going to do?_

_I can stop him,_ Mint told Rue, _but you and Ruenis need to leave. I have to do this alone. Hurry - you'll have seconds at the most._

Thoughts that couldn't be captured in words flitted between them in less than a millisecond, and they reached an understanding.

Rue hesitated. _Sister…_ The unfamiliar word echoed across the aether, and Mint saddened momentarily.

_Goodbye, brother,_ she said. Then she mysteriously added, _Don't ever doubt that you have a heart. Follow it - though you may end up like my father, if you don't try, you will always wonder._

Even she wasn't sure why she said that.

Then the millisecond passed, and Mint returned her focus to Valen and the magic she was calling on.

Valen was already shedding what remained of his person and changing to a form of pure light, ready to surrender himself to his creation of infinite power and infuse it with his madness, thus bringing about ultimate destruction. Mint quickly tossed her Dual Halos around her left arm even as she lowered it and held it out at Valen. Normally, she aimed her magic with her left arm and channeled it through her right, but this time she needed to combine the magic of her mother's [relic] with her Dual Halos - which, she took a split second to realize, had actually always been a [relic] in their own right. But there was no time to think about that now.

"Stop!" she shouted, firing magic between Valen and the Dewprism to keep them apart. It would only last for ten seconds, but that was enough time. Behind her, Rue had grabbed Ruenis and was sprinting out the portal in the wall with his brother in tow.

She tossed her Dual Halos back into her right hand, and raised the Ring of Life to the sky once more. "Lah-kou-tae!" she cried again. "Lah-kou-tou!"

The green light of the ring and the pink light of her life stone grew brighter and brighter, until they merged together, forming a blinding light of pure white. Too late, Valen realized what Mint was about to do, but nothing could stop the magic now, not even the Dewprism. There was a flash, and then a swirl, as the entire room was scooped out of existence and pulled through the rift in the floor, which then turned in on itself and vanished in a massive implosion.

Rue and Ruenis barely made it out the blue-and-gold doors to join Klaus, Belle, Duke, and Maya before the anti-explosion rocked everything and sent everyone tumbling to the floor. Order returned surprisingly quickly, and when the remaining attendants opened their eyes, there was nothing but a crater where the central chamber of the Ruins of Ephlesia had been.

Everyone stared in silence for a minute.

"So…that's it?" Belle asked at last. "It's all over?"

"I guess so," Rue said. Even in spite of the forewarning he'd had, his mind was reeling in the face of everything that had just happened. It had all gone by so quickly…

Klaus stood up and ran towards the wreckage. Luckily, most of the study had escaped the dimensional shift, if not damage, and to his relief, a lot of the ancient texts there were salvageable. He started gathering up books without a word. When he had more in his arms than he could carry, he put them all in a stack just outside the door, then went back in for more, as everyone else just stared at him.

Finally, Rue stood up and went to help Klaus gather the books. Ruenis soon joined him, followed by Belle and then Duke. Between the five of them, they could just barely carry every single tome that had been inside, and they all started walking back out in silence. They didn't need to follow the spiral path anymore - every enchantment on the ruins had broken, leaving a clear passage straight to the exit, where the first rays of dawn light began to shine through the doorway, lighting up the ancient building at last.

~o~

The following few days were very strange.

Mira, Elena, and Prima Doll were relieved when Klaus finally came back to the inn where they'd been staying, but this relief was quickly replaced by shock and awe as they were told what had happened. The other inhabitants of Avalon were the next to know, and quickly became curious as to what this would mean for them; sure enough, when night came, the unease that had once enshrouded the land proved to have lifted - insects and owls made as much noise as they pleased, and even the sounds of some of the less-friendly inhabitants of the nearby wilderness could be heard occasionally.

Maya quickly returned to East Heaven, feeling almost rushed to let the general public of the world know everything that had happened. When about a thousandfold of the normal amount of tourists began to flood Avalon in the wake of her news, Rod's business also bloomed, and he chose to stick around a lot longer than normal.

Klaus and his family had a hard time arranging for all of the books from the ruins to be transported back to Carona, but Klaus was adamant about having all of it. He would be the one to possibly fill in several blanks in ancient history, as was his dream, and it would probably help him make a living a lot more easily, too. However, during the arrangement for transportation, a few of the books mysteriously vanished, and wouldn't resurface until ten years later, after the new chunks of history had become famous with the public, in a few pawn shops across the continent. Belle and Duke vanished mysteriously as well, never to be seen again, though somehow, their various debts all over the world would eventually be paid in full by unknown means.

As for Rue and Ruenis, they weren't sure what to do for a little while. Ruenis wanted to return to Claire immediately and continue his relationship with her, hopefully in a much more normal manner, but Rue was torn. Mint's final words haunted him with surprising persistence. Finally, as Klaus and his family left for Carona, Rue decided to part ways with his brother and visit Carona himself. When Ruenis asked why, Rue told his brother, "You and Claire will probably want some time alone, and…there's something I need to…take care of."

Ruenis didn't question this, and they parted. Rue wasn't entirely sure what he was doing, but he knew he didn't want to say goodbye to Elena, at least not yet, and that was enough.

~X~

_Silence, that was full of sounds. Prismatic triangles forming and shattering in all the colors of the rainbow and more. No weight, no up, no down, no left or right, no near or far, no right or wrong. Thought and emotion sang, while everything physical was muted, hazy._

Father…

_Mint's thought drifted through the space, a lavender ribbon slithering through the prisms._

Mintazene._ Valen's reply was a midnight blue, almost black, a sharp contrast to the bright colors that filled the shattering and reforming prisms._

_Silence passed in a tremendous cacophony._

Why?_ Valen asked at last._

Because you weren't thinking clearly,_ Mint replied._

You joined me here…

You've been alone for way too long,_ Mint said. _Alone with your thoughts…with your heartbreak…it's driven you mad.

_Valen's azure voice became lanced with red lines like lightning bolts. _I have done nothing but suffer at the hands of others. Everyone I respected, even everyone I created, all of them turned on me for things I never asked for.

People fear power in others,_ Mint agreed, and some bright-pink bubbles of laughter began popping in her lavender voice. _Maya was sure scared of the idea of me becoming more powerful than her. And for good reason, I guess.

To be powerful is to be alone,_ Valen said, the red fading, replaced with pale blue rivulets like tears. _With all the power I was born with, I could change everything.

But all things as they are now have a right to be as they are,_ Mint said._

_She reached out, and their minds touched, exchanging thoughts faster than time could measure. Mint felt Valen's sadness and pain, and caught glimpses of his memories of her mother. Likewise, he felt her own sadness. She wasn't angry, and she wasn't hateful; she was still confused, but no longer uncertain. Mostly, she was sad that she'd never be able to be a full-grown Aeon in the real world, never learn what she could do, how powerful she was._

_In this dimension, feelings manifested physically, like all immaterial things - Valen's heart had literally spent centuries beating in agony, broken as it was, Mint could see that now. But it was still there. Mint could see that, too, without any doubt._

You thought all things as they are now were yours to conquer,_ Valen said at last._

_Mint did laugh this time, and bubble-gum pink bubbles flew around and burst, shattering the prisms of color everywhere they popped, putting on a dazzling display of color and light._

I guess I got that from you,_ she said. Thoughts took their time to form in her mind for a moment, then came out: _I would still like to rule the world, same as you. I guess I just never really thought about how anyone else might feel about it.

And now?_ Valen asked, odd violet swirls appearing in his words._

Now…I think I'd be a lot better at being queen of the world,_ Mint said, little flashes of pink still lacing her voice. _I wouldn't be focused only on having everything for its own sake, like humans so often do.

I don't want to rebuild the world for the sake of my own gain, either,_ Valen said. _I just want to fix everything broken in it, and there's so much…

Not as much as you think,_ Mint said, a strange tenderness, unfamiliar to her, turning her lavender voice a soft mint-green, like her mother's eyes had been. _Mother was surprised by the way you dumped everything on her so suddenly._ She could see this in the little glimpses she'd caught of Valen's memories, made clearer to her by her mother's [relic], and possibly also by the essence of her mother that was part of her being. _You were very sudden, and very…passionate. You scared her. But she didn't hate you.

Ruehi always understood everyone,_ Valen said, a bit of red flashing through his words again, _and when she encountered something about someone that she didn't understand, she refused to rest until she did. But she didn't even try to understand me.

You scared her,_ Mint repeated. _She didn't know for sure that Aeons were actually subject to the same emotions as humans - your abrupt and overwhelming display surprised her too much for her to even try to make sense of it.

And how do you know this?_ Valen demanded, a pale yellow mixing with the red to create an even more menacing undertone. _You weren't there.

I'm her daughter,_ Mint said, and that was all there was to it._

_Existence continued for a bit. Both Mint and Valen thought, but both kept their thoughts private from one another._

We may be here forever,_ Valen said at last._

Maybe,_ Mint said. _Or maybe one of your dolls will reach another access point one day.

If they do, will they only release one or the other of us, or will we both be able to escape?_ Valen asked._

I don't know,_ Mint replied truthfully. _I only hope it doesn't happen for a long time._ A few more pink laughter bubbles scattered through the unspace. _We have a lot to catch up on.

_And Valen's mood changed from a storm cloud to a cloud lined with silver. Elsewhere in the unspace, the Dewprism and the Ring of Life waited together - the [relics] of the two greatest Aeons who ever lived, together at last, as they always ought to have been._

* * *

**Credit goes to penname "ReLiC AnGeL" for Mint's pink life stone.**


End file.
